New York, New York
by B13Bren
Summary: Sequel to "Be There For You". Shelby takes Rachel with her to nationals in New York. Shell.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: This is a sequel to "Be There For You" so I highly recommend you read it first. I wanted to thank everyone who encouraged me to write this, I really appreciate it and I hope you like it.**

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"That was great guys. That's it for today. Remember that we have to be at the airport at 8 so please arrive on time, I wouldn't want to leave anyone behind. Also, I wanted to make an announcement. You know how I always take someone to help me while we're there? Well, this year I'm taking Rachel so I want you all to be on your best behavior." Most of the kids didn't look like they cared or maybe they were too tired to care but she saw some of the older kids stare at her in disbelief.

"But she's in New Directions. They're our competition." Shelby glared at the girl who said it and she swallowed. Then she addressed the whole group.

"She's not our immediate competition right now, we already beat them and they're not going to nationals. She's going there to help me and I will appreciate it if you treat her with respect and get over your juvenile competitive attitude." She looked back to the girl. "You could learn a thing or two from her; she's a better singer that you are." She started to gather her things.

"I trust we won't have any problems with this." She heard a chorus of "Yes Ms. Corcoran" and she turned to leave.

"Ms. Corcoran?" She turned back and found Jesse staring at her.

"Yes Jesse, what can I do for you?" Jesse fidgeted nervously.

"Is Rachel really coming?" _Didn't I just say that?_

"Yes, and if you have a problem with that, I really don't have time to discuss it right now."

"Does she ever talk about me?" Shelby was stunned. She never actually thought he would have the nerve of coming and asking her this after what she did to her before regionals. She liked Jesse and she knew that at his age the kind of pressure he got from the other kids was hard to resist. But he had hurt Rachel and disappointed her. She really hated hurting him but she had to stop him from hurting her more.

"I'm sorry Jesse, but Rachel is with Finn now. She has never asked about you and you are certainly not the reason she agreed to come. So if you don't have any more questions, I have to go. And I would appreciate if during the trip you wouldn't bother Rachel." She walked away leaving Jesse with a sad look on his face.

* * *

Rachel was watching a movie at Finn's house when her phone rang. "Hi mom!"

"Hi baby. Ready for tomorrow?" Rachel reached for the remote and paused the movie.

"Yeah, I'm almost done packing. You're picking me up at 7, right?"

"Yes, Will is taking us to the airport. He's coming over for dinner and stuff." Rachel wrinkled her nose. She still didn't like knowing about her mom and her teacher doing "stuff".

"I didn't need to know the stuff part of your evening but thanks for that." Shelby laughed.

"Oh come on, don't be such a prude. He's actually really good." Rachel cringed. She really didn't need to know that.

"I'm hanging up now. See you tomorrow." She put the phone down and started the movie again. They watched it in silence for a few minutes until Finn suddenly spoke.

"I can't believe you're going with those idiots." Rachel looked at him. They had talked about it already. He wasn't happy but he said he understood.

"I'm going with my mom and it's a great opportunity to learn something that can help us for next year. We already had this conversation Finn." Finn took the remote and paused the movie again.

"I know, but I don't see why you have to go spend a week with your ex without other supervision than your mom who probably loves the guy." _So that's what this was about, Jesse being there._

"Do you think I need supervision? Don't you trust me?"

"I don't trust him!" That was the same thing as not trusting her. _I can handle Jesse, what's his problem?_

"Finn, you're my boyfriend not my boss. You don't get to tell me where I can go and with whom."

Finn got off the couch. "Then maybe I'm not your boyfriend anymore."

"Then maybe you're not." She stood up and walked away.

* * *

Shelby looked through her peep hole and saw Will standing on the other side. She opened the door and he pinned her to the wall as soon as she closed it.

After a while they had to part for air. "Dinner's ready, I bought Chinese."

He chuckled and continued his attack. "Are you hungry?" She cocked an eyebrow. "Not really"

He wrapped her legs around his waist and carried her towards the bedroom. "Good, we'll reheat."

"That was amazing" They lay on her bed with the sheets all tangled around them. They were on their backs panting heavily.

"I'm really going to miss you." She tuned to him and laid her head on her chest listening to his heartbeat. He ran his fingers through her hair and rested his hand on her back.

She'd never actually had anyone in her life for a long enough time to miss. But even though they had only been going out for a little more than a month, she was going to miss him too. "I'm really going to miss you too, especially after this."

He laughed and the movement shook her head. "Well, I wanted you to have something to remember me by. You're going away for three weeks." He pulled her closer to him. "Can't you just send the kids without you?"

"They need me there. If they didn't, they wouldn't pay me what they pay me." She kissed his chest, got up and put on his shirt. "I'm hungry now and thanks to you I have to reheat dinner."

He got off the bed and took some sweats out of a drawer. He had convinced her to give up some closet space since he spent a lot of nights on her place. She also took some of her stuff to his place since they rarely spent a night apart except for the times Rachel stayed with her or when she got off really late from rehearsal.

He walked to the kitchen and leaned on the doorframe. He loved how she looked with his shirt on. She caught him staring at her with a goofy grin. "What?"

"Nothing, I was just thinking that you look really hot in my shirt." She rolled her eyes and took the food out of the microwave. He took some of the containers and some napkins and she took the rest of the food with her to the living room couch.

* * *

Will picked up a box and frowned. "There's only one dumpling left."

"You can have it, I had the last spring roll." He looked from the box to Shelby trying to decide if he should eat it or give it to her.

"Are you sure? They're really good." Shelby smiled and took the box from him. "I know they're good, I already ate some." She took the dumpling with her sticks and fed it to him. "This one is yours."

Will smiled. Even though he would do anything she asked at the snap of her finger, he knew she would do anything for him too. He pulled her to him and she straddled him. He rested his back on the couch and pulled a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Thank you."

"It was just a dumpling, Will." She didn't get it. It wasn't just the dumpling. It was the dumpling and the closet space and the times she helped him with something without him asking. It was the times she let him have the shower first even when she had somewhere to be and the times she called him to ask about his day even when she was exhausted from her Vocal Adrenaline rehearsals. Terri never did that. With Terri he gave and she took. With Shelby everything was easier, he had fun and he could be himself. He was truly happier than ever.

Will looked at her and ran his hands along her thighs. She had one of her trademark amused smiles. _She's so beautiful and talented and amazing and_… "I love you." _Oh my god did I just say that out loud?_

Her smile disappeared, now she just looked shocked_. He loves me? Where did that come from? I just gave him a freaking dumpling!_ She stood up and started gathering the empty food containers. "I should throw this out before I forget and leave this just rotting away for three weeks." She went into the kitchen, threw the cartons away and rested her back against the fridge. She needed to think. _This is not the end of the world. He loves me and I… I don't know how I feel and I just left him there. What kind of horrible person leaves after someone says I love you? What kind of person loves someone like that? But what did he expect? He just blurted it out! What was I supposed to do? I can't say it back, I don't know if I love him. I have feelings for him, strong feelings but love?_

Will rested his elbows on his knees and his head on his hands. How could he be so stupid? She was probably hyperventilating right now if she didn't already flee through the kitchen window. It was too soon, he knew that, but he did love her and it just came out. He gave her a few minutes and then walked to the kitchen. She saw her leaning on the fridge looking at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry." She turned at the sound of his voice with a confused look.

"For what_?" Why is he apologizing? I am the one who left him there. _He walked to her.

"It just came out. I put you in an uncomfortable position and I didn't mean to, I shouldn't have said that." She looked even more confused now and hurt. _He shouldn't have said that? He didn't mean to? _She felt like something pressing down on her chest and suddenly she felt like she was going to cry. _What the hell is wrong with me? Calm down!_

"So you don't love me?" Now Will was the one who was confused. She practically ran when he said it the first time and now she wanted him to say it again.

"That's not the point! I saw how scared you got when I said it! You couldn't get out of the room faster!" he didn't really know why, but he was talking a little too loud so he took a deep breath and ran a hand across his face.

"I needed to think Will, and frankly being on top of you didn't help with that." She turned away from him and leaned on the counter. She started to feel like she couldn't breathe. She needed to know if he meant what he said. She took a deep breath and turned back to him. "But that's not what I asked. Do you love me?"

_Is she for real?_ "Yes! I love you! I already said it! God, do you need me to…" He didn't get to finish what he was saying because Shelby's lips crashed onto his. She pushed him out of the kitchen and into the bedroom without separating their lips. They fell on the bed.

"Does this mean that you?" She pushed him on his back. "Shut up and kiss me." He lifted his head and pulled her down to do just that. This time the kiss was slower and even if she didn't say it, he got his answer.

**

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AN: I don't think I can do daily updates on this one too but I will try to update regularly. Let me know what you think.**


	2. Goodbye Lima, Hello New York

**AN: So here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoy it. Thanks for your reviews! I'm glad you were interested in this sequel, I was nervous about posting it. I also wanted to know how you felt about some St Berry. I was thinking of putting some but I can leave it out if you guys hate it. Let me know.  
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Chapter 2: Goodbye Lima, Hello New York

Shelby knocked on the door at exactly 7 am and was greeted by Mark. "Hi Shelby. Rachel! Shelby's here!" They never referred to her as Rachel's mom.

"This is Will; he's taking us to the airport." Mark smiled when he recognized Will. "Mr. Schuester, of course. How nice of you, I didn't know you knew Shelby."

Rachel came down the stairs with Ben carrying a huge suitcase behind her and Will was thankful for the interruption. "Hi Mr. Schue. Hi mom." She threw her arms around Shelby. They took her suitcase to the car. They had decided that Will drove them in Shelby's car, since his would probably collapse with the weight of the suitcases.

Rachel went to say goodbye to her dads and then got in the car. "I thought you said Finn was coming with us to the airport." Rachel looked out the window.

"He's not." Shelby exchanged a look with Will but decided not to pressure Rachel. She would tell her when she was ready. The drove to the airport in silence, Will kept Shelby's hand in his as if trying to memorize how it felt.

"You guys are really mushy, you know that right?" Shelby turned around to look at Rachel with an outraged look.

"I'm not mushy!" Rachel laughed. At least she wasn't pouting anymore about whatever happened with Finn. Still, Shelby had a reputation to protect and being mushy would not help.

"You haven't let go of his hand since we got in the car." She pried her hand away from his. "He looks at you as if you are the greatest thing ever created and then you look at him as if he's made out of chocolate and you want to eat him up. You guys are mushy. It's ok, just kind of nauseating at times but it's cute." Shelby turned back around and flopped loudly on her seat with her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"I'm not mushy and I'm not cute." Will laughed at her voice. He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. "I think we are mushy and you are totally cute." She snapped her hand back and mumbled something they couldn't understand.

They arrived to the airport before 8 and had plenty of time to check their bags in. Shelby had gotten over the mushy thing a few minutes later and they had a pleasant drive with Will holding her hand again. After they were done with their bags the walked to one side and saw the first of the Vocal Adrenaline members start arriving.

Shelby groaned. "I have to go greet parents and stuff. I hate parents. You guys wanna go wait for me at the restaurant? We don't have to be at the gate until eight thirty." They both nodded and watched her walk away and plaster a fake smile on her face as she approached a group of parents standing near the baggage check line.

They entered the restaurant and Rachel ordered a root beer float, Will had coffee. "Are you ok Rachel? Did something happen with Finn?" Rachel pushed the ice cream down with the straw and watched it float back up.

"We broke up but I'm fine. I'm not going to let it ruin my trip." She looked up and gave Will a weak smile.

"Shelby is really excited about it. She's been talking about it nonstop for the last couple of weeks. She loves spending time with you and she loves New York." Rachel's smile got wider. "I have no idea how you're going to do everything she wants to do in just two weeks." He laughed.

Rachel looked down to her drink. "Has she said if I'm going to meet her friend?" Rachel was nervous. If she was the person who knew her mom the best, her only real friend, she didn't want to screw it up.

"She doesn't really talk about her that much. I've only heard her talk to her a few times but I think she said something about going to an off-Broadway thing she was doing." Will looked at Rachel. "You're going to be ok Rachel. Shelby loves you very much and you're going to learn a lot from this trip so we can kick her ass next year at regionals." Rachel laughed with him.

"Whose ass are you planning on kicking?" Shelby walked towards their booth smiling. She put her hand on Rachel's shoulder and arched an eyebrow in Will's direction.

"Yours, but you already knew that. With mini you here, learning from the best, no one will be able to stop us." Shelby smiled. She couldn't deny that the idea of Rachel winning was as good as she winning herself.

"We should go. Most of the kids are already at the gate." They walked towards the metal detectors and Shelby turned around to say goodbye to Will and Rachel moved to the side to give them a little privacy.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and she locked her hands on the back of his neck. "I'm gonna miss you." He kissed her but she pulled away.

"Remember to water my plants." He nodded and moved to kiss her but she pulled back again. "And remember to set the alarm when you leave, I gave you the number. And don't leave my mail just lying around; put it on the table by the door. And leave my car in the garage; don't just leave it on the driveway."

"We already talked about this, now shut up and kiss me." Shelby smiled as he repeated the same words she said to him the night before and let him kiss her.

Rachel was watching them as she felt someone standing beside her. "Wow! I didn't know they were together." Rachel turned and saw Jesse with his mouth hanging open in surprise. "She did seem happier and less bitchy but we all assumed it was because of you. Wow! She really went over to the dark side."

"What do you mean by the dark side?" Jesse held up his hands defensively.

"It's just a saying. What I meant is that she's really into McKinley now. Next thing she's gonna go over there and take you to nationals instead of us." Rachel threw him a look and turned back to Shelby and Will.

"Well, like you said, you never noticed. Her personal life is none of your business and it's not going to affect her job. She's very professional. Aren't you supposed to be at the gate by now?" she turned and crossed her hands across her chest.

"I am; I just got distracted. See you there Rachel." He walked towards the metal detectors and waved.

Will and Shelby finished saying their goodbyes and walked towards Rachel. "Call me when you get there." Shelby took Rachel's hand and pulled her to the departure gate. Rachel looked at her. She looked sad.

"You're really going to miss him." It wasn't a question but she nodded and took a deep breath to square her features. She walked towards the pack of students standing outside the gate.

"All right guys, I want you to stay in the groups I assigned you. When we get to JFK, wait for everyone to get off the plane. If someone needs to go to the bathroom when we get there, hold it in until we get to the hotel, I don't want anyone to get left behind. No singing on the plane, I've had complaints before. And to those of you who don't know this is Rachel." She pointed at her and she gave them a shy smile. "She's my daughter and she's gonna be helping us this week." They announced their flight and got in line to start boarding.

Two girls approached Rachel and stood on either side of her. "Hi Rachel, sorry about the whole egging thing, you were our competition. You get it, right?" Rachel nodded while looking from one girl to the other. "Anyway, we're really glad you're here. We're gonna have a great time. See ya!" They walked ahead of her.

Rachel didn't know if she should be scared or happy about that conversation. She took her seat and Shelby took the seat next to her after she made sure everyone was on their seats.

"Hey, is everything ok?" Rachel looked at her and smiled. "Yeah" she chewed on her bottom lip.

"I broke up with Finn yesterday, but I'm ok. He was a jerk." Shelby hugged her to her side.

"Are you sure?" Rachel nodded. "You want to help me with something?" Rachel straightened up and nodded again.

Shelby took out a bunch of papers from her briefcase. Rachel looked at them and saw it was sheet music.

"These are the songs you're doing?" Shelby nodded and passed her a bunch.

"I'm taking a final look at the arrangements. It's too late to change something now but I can smooth out the kinks tomorrow at the final rehearsal with the band." Rachel studied the sheets Shelby gave her. They were all scribbled over with notes, some of them barely legible. She squinted and tried to read some of the notes. She could only make out a few words. She saw Shelby cross out something on the paper she was reading and write something next to it.

They talked about the songs for a while and Shelby explained her notes. After yawning a few times Shelby decided this wasn't working.

"I'm gonna take a nap, I didn't get much sleep last night." Shelby turned and closed her eyes. Rachel continued to study the sheet music Shelby gave her when Jesse's face appeared behind the seat in front of her.

"Hey" She didn't look at him and continued to study the papers in front of her.

"You wanted something Jesse? She's sleeping." Jesse looked at Shelby to make sure she was really asleep.

"I know. I actually wanted to talk to you." Rachel looked at him for a second and then looked back to the papers. He didn't say anything for a while, he just looked at her. Rachel was getting annoyed by his presence.

"If you want to say something, just say it Jesse or go away."

"Is it true that you're going out with Finn now?" Rachel looked at him. What was his problem? He broke up with her and then broke and egg on her forehead. What was he thinking coming and asking about who she was dating?

"Not that it's any of your business but we broke up." Jesse couldn't help the smile he got at that.

"Ok, I was just curious. I should go back to my seat, we'll be landing soon." Jesse left and Rachel thought it had been a really weird conversation. The flight attendant announced they were starting to land so Rachel shook Shelby awake.

"We're landing." Shelby gave her a sleepy smile and stretched. Rachel looked out the window trying to make something out as they went down. She felt the seat shake when they landed and Shelby helped her get her things from the overhead compartment. She smiled. She was finally in New York.


	3. Truce

**AN: I know that having nationals at Radio City Music Hall seems too farfetched but I thought it would be cool and I though Madison Square Garden was too big hahaha. I've never been to New York (I'm actually going in July XD and I'm watching Wicked yay!) so I apologize for any inaccuracies.**

**Also, I'm really bad with naming stuff so if I have to name something/someone it will probably suck.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or anything. I just noticed I didn't put one on the other chapters. Are these really necessary? I hate them. I obviously don't own Glee! Disclaimer rant over, you can read now.**

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Chapter 3: Truce

"Wow!" Rachel walked into The Plaza with her mouth gaping open. "We're staying here?" Shelby smiled at her amazement.

"Just for nationals, after the kids leave we're going to stay at a B&B on the Upper West Side." Shelby walked to the counter to get all the room keys. Rachel continued to walk around the lobby. It was beautiful.

"Amazing, right?" Rachel jumped at Jesse's voice and turned to him. He had a small smile on his face. "We always stay here, Ms. Corcoran likes the view and we get a discount from the Show Choir Committee since we are the defending champions. Besides, we can walk to Radio City Music Hall for the rehearsals and the performances so we don't spend a lot on transportation."

Rachel turned to look at Jesse. _Maybe we can be cordial since we're spending the whole week together._ "Jesse, I'd like to propose a truce."

Jesse smiled amused. "A truce?" Rachel nodded.

"Since we're spending the whole week together, we can be civil. I will forget the whole egg thing and you will forget whatever it is I did and we will be nice to each other, agreed?" She held out her hand and he shook it. He heard Shelby's heels clicking behind them and he let go of Rachel's hand and took a step back.

"Jesse, your friends already have your room key, you should take you things up. We're leaving in half an hour." Jesse walked away from them. "Come on Rachel, we should go too." Rachel walked with her towards the elevators.

"Are we sharing a room?" Shelby pressed the 8th floor button. "Sort of, you'll see."

"You don't have to yell at Jesse every time he talks to me, I can take care of myself." Shelby gave her a surprised look; she didn't think it was that obvious that she didn't want Jesse around Rachel. Well, only to Jesse who she explicitly told him to stay away. But Rachel was right; she couldn't go around yelling at him just because he talked to Rachel.

"I'm sorry; I just don't want you to get hurt." Rachel squeezed her hand.

"I know, and I appreciate it. But you can't always be there to protect me. Besides, we made a truce. He promised he would be nice." The elevator dinged and the door opened. Rachel walked behind the bellboy and watched him open the door to their room. She walked in. there was a small living room with an amazing view of central park and the city. Shelby walked to a door on the left and opened it.

"This is your room." Rachel walked in. it had a beautiful bed and a great view and its own bathroom. Shelby tipped the bellboy and he left. She walked back to Rachel's room and leaned on the doorframe. "I'm on the other side. Do you like it?"

"I love it!" Rachel jumped and landed on her bed and Shelby chuckled. "This is amazing. I'm staying at the plaza in this amazing suite with my mom." She leaned on her elbows and looked at Shelby. "If someone had told me 6 months ago that I'd be here with you, I would have thought they were crazy."

She smiled, got off the bed and threw her arms around Shelby. "I'm really glad you asked me to come." Shelby held her tight and fought the tears she felt coming. "I'm really glad you said yes."

They pulled away and Shelby wiped a tear discreetly. "We should get ready; we're leaving in a few minutes."

* * *

Shelby called Will as soon as they walked out of the hotel. "Hi, beautiful, missing me already?"

Shelby smiled when she heard his voice. "No, you told me to call you when we got here and I didn't get a chance to do it until now."

"Well, I do miss you already and before you ask me, I left your car in the garage and I set the alarm." Shelby was going to ask him just that. He could be absentminded sometimes.

"I love you." Shelby got that weird feeling again. She still wasn't ready to say it. "I… I'll call you."

Rachel walked along 5th avenue. She kept getting behind because she would stop at times to look at the shops and Shelby had to go back and drag her back. "We'll come shopping next week." Rachel smiled and tried not to get distracted. They got to St. Patrick's Cathedral and turned right. After a few blocks, they reached Radio City Music Hall and walked in. Rachel was in awe. She promised herself that she would be here next year with New Directions.

A blonde woman in a red vest walked towards them "Shelby! So nice to see you again! I'm glad you guys could make it, not that I had any doubt. You've win this thing so many times I don't even know why we have this, we should just hand over the trophy to you." She gave a fake laugh. Rachel could see that Shelby didn't like her. "Is she part of Vocal Adrenaline?" She said pointing at Rachel.

"No, actually she's my daughter, Rachel." The woman arched an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

"Anyway, I hope I get to see your performance. It was nice to meet you, Rachel." She turned around and walked towards a group of kids.

"That's the coach from Perfect Harmony, they're from LA. They were the favorites before I came along. She hates me but she's always really nice and chipper. I can't stand her. I should go register the team. You can look around if you like; the kids are around here somewhere." Shelby left her standing there and Rachel started to roam around the room.

"Hey, Rach, come here!" One of the Vocal Adrenaline girls from the airport was calling her. She was with the other girl and some other people. They never actually said their names so Rachel didn't really know how to call them.

"I wanted to introduce you to part of the team. That's John, Adam, you remember Lisa" She pointed to the other girl from the airport. "And that's Kate." She pointed to another girl who looked like she would rather be somewhere else.

"So, are you enjoying the trip so far? I heard you got a room to yourself on Ms. Corcoran's suite." Rachel nodded. "I have to share a room with these two and they are with Jesse. How's it going with Jesse by the way? It must be weird for you."

"Not that much, we talked and we're cool now." The girl arched an eyebrow. She didn't look too happy with Rachel's answer.

"We should go see when they scheduled our rehearsal. Let's go guys." They all walked away except for Kate.

"You're not going?" Kate sat on the bottom of a stairwell.

"No, they can tell me later. Besides I can't stand being around Andrea anymore." Rachel was confused.

"I thought you were friends, you're sharing a room." Kate chuckled.

"Well, Lisa is the only one who actually likes her so she didn't really have much choice and since we're both sopranos Ms. Corcoran thought we should be together for rehearsal purposes." Rachel sat down next to her. "You shouldn't trust her, she seems nice but she can fake it well. Besides, she's always had a thing for Jesse so she might just be scoping out the competition."

"Thanks." Rachel thought about it. She has often been described as naïve and she had never been a great judge of character, look at what happened with Jesse, so Andrea might not be as nice as she appeared to be.

"You like being in Vocal Adrenaline?" Kate was surprised by the question. She was her coach's daughter so she had to watch what she said. Rachel saw her hesitate and guessed what she was thinking. "I won't tell my mom, I'm just curious." Kate decided to be honest.

"Yeah, I really like it. I love singing and, I'm not just saying this but, Ms. Corcoran is the best. She might be hard sometimes but it's only because she wants us to be great. Hell week's the worst but it's mostly to discourage slackers when the year's just starting." Rachel thought how she was one of the only people who got to see Shelby's softer side.

"You're really good too. I went with Ms. Corcoran to sectionals and I heard you at regionals." Rachel smiled. "Thanks."

Shelby saw Rachel sitting on the stairs with Kate. She liked Kate, she was one of the few kids who weren't overly smug and she had a good voice, nothing extraordinary but good. She finished filling out the papers and getting their schedules and she walked to the girls.

"Hey, we have about an hour before I have to be back to check the equipment, I gave the kids the afternoon off. Do you want to go grab something to eat? I also wanted to go over what I need you to do." Rachel stood up and Kate stayed behind. Shelby noticed the girl wasn't moving so she turned to her.

"You can come too if you like," Kate smiled and jumped up. "unless you want to go with the other kids." Was she kidding? No one was ever invited to "grab something to eat" with Ms. Corcoran. Not even Jesse and he was her star. She shook her head.

They bought a hot dog from a street vendor and sat around a fountain. Rachel got a veggie falafel and Kate moved over so she could sit between Shelby and her. To say she was intimidated by her was an understatement so she needed a buffer between the two of them.

"I need you to go over that checklist I gave you for the equipment when we go back." Rachel nodded and bit her falafel. "We're doing a sound check tomorrow morning and then the final rehearsal. Performances start the day after tomorrow. We're on around 5 o'clock and they give the results a few days after that when all the teams have performed."

They continued eating in silence for a while. Shelby finished het hot dog first and scrunched up her wrapper to throw it away when they left. She laid back and rested her weight on her hands. "I love being back in New York. I wish I had the time to come here more often."

Rachel heard the sadness in her voice. If things had turned out differently she would probably be living here but she doubted that if she had turned into a big star she would have wanted to meet her. Shelby some stray hairs from her face and turned to Kate. "So, Kate, are you ready for the big day?"

"Yes, Ms. Corcoran. I've been practicing the things you pointed out before we left." Rachel laughed. She couldn't help it. It was just really funny how Kate tensed up when Shelby talked to her and how she said "yes, Ms. Corcoran" like she was her drill sergeant.

"What at you laughing at?" Shelby didn't get it and she looked at Kate to see if she had seen something but she seemed as confused as her.

"I'm sorry." She said through her laugh. "I thought it was funny the way she said 'Ms. Corcoran'"

Shelby still didn't get it. "That's my name." Kate was terrified. She didn't think it was funny and she didn't know if she would be mad at her or something.

"I know." Rachel looked at Kate's terrified look and started laughing again. "I can't stop laughing, wait." She took a deep breath and controlled her laugh.

"It's funny how different you can be with your students and how they react to you." Rachel turned to Kate. "You should have seen the look on your face. It was really funny." Shelby squinted at her but she didn't give her a full on glare. She was different with her students, they had to respect her and obey her.

Rachel felt bad for laughing at them but she really couldn't help it. "She's actually really nice when she's not all business." Shelby tried to keep a straight face but she smiled and Kate visibly relaxed.

"I am, actually. But I can't be nice all the time so I'd appreciate it if you don't burst out laughing every time a student gives me that scared look. It happens a lot and you might get bladder control problems." Rachel smirked and Shelby stuck her tongue out at her. Kate laughed. They rarely got the chance to see Shelby as relaxed as this. Only the times after they won and she would take them out for their celebration dinner but she was never like this.

Shelby got up and threw her wrapper at a nearby trashcan. "We should go back in." She grabbed Rachel's hand and pulled her up. "Come on Berry, we have stuff to do." Rachel laughed and pulled Kate up with her.

**

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AN: So this was mostly a filler chapter but still I hope you liked it. It's harder to write this one since I don't really have the show as a guideline like with the other one so be patient if I take longer to post, I'm really trying. Thanks for your reviews, past and future :D**


	4. Starting Over

**AN: I'm really happy! I'm getting lots of reviews so to thank you for it you get a new update. I wrote text messages between hyphens just so you know. Enjoy! Also, if you haven't heard "For Good" from Wicked you really should. And if you have, there are a lot of live versions on Youtube from idina's concerts which are really good too. My favorite is the one where she forgets the lyrics. Watch it, it's really funny. Anyway, you can read now.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee.**

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Chapter 4: Starting Over

Shelby sat at the piano and played a few notes. "A bit higher." She continued to play. Rachel was sitting at the edge of the stage waiting to have something to do. They had been doing the sound check for more than half an hour and the final rehearsal was scheduled to begin in a little while.

"That's good. We just have to check the microphones. Rachel can you help me with that?" Rachel stood up and walked to her.

"I need you to stand there and sing with me." Rachel moved to where Shelby pointed her to.

"What are we singing?" Shelby considered it. It had to be something they both knew and that they could sing together.

"How about For Good from Wicked?" Rachel nodded with a smile. "Ok, I need you to stay there and then around the middle walk towards the center so they can check the whole stage. I'll star on this side and meet you in the middle. You wanna do Glinda?"

Rachel nodded again. She was a bit nervous but it was only them and the sound guys and she sang with Shelby all the time. Not on the stage of the Radio City Music Hall, of course. She took a deep breath and waited for Shelby to start.

Shelby started singing and Rachel was amazed at her voice even though she'd heard her sing many times before. She would start to sing randomly at times when she was washing the dishes or when they were in the car and there was a song she liked on the radio. She knew she could sing but when she started the first few lines, the beauty of her voice took her breath away. She almost forgot to start singing when it was her turn.

Rachel started singing Glinda's part and Shelby smiled. She was really proud of her and thought how well that song fit them. She could do all she couldn't do. She could be great and achieve everything she couldn't. She still got surprised at how well their voices blended together.

None of them noticed when the kids from Vocal Adrenaline entered but when they both sang the last "for good…" they heard cheering and clapping. They both turned around and Rachel blushed when she saw they had an audience.

One of the sound techs came over and started discussing some final details with Shelby so Rachel got off the stage. Kate approached Rachel as soon as she got off.

"Wow that was amazing. You're really good." Rachel smiled at her.

"Thanks, we were just doing the sound check."

Soon Andrea and the other kids joined them. Jesse was with them. Andrea stepped up to Rachel with a cocky smile. "That was quite a demonstration. Too bad your team isn't as good as you; otherwise they'd be here too." She said it nicely but with a hint of sarcasm. Jesse stepped between the two of them.

Shelby finished talking with the sound guy and called them over. "Guys! Get up here. I need you to start rehearsing now." Andrea gave Rachel a smirk as she walked away and Kate gave her a sympathetic smile.

Jesse stayed until they were gone. "Don't listen to her. She just likes pushing people's buttons." He reached out to brush Rachel's arm and smiled when she didn't move away. "I should go before Ms. Corcoran starts yelling at me again." Rachel smiled and watched him walk away.

* * *

Rachel was waiting for Shelby to get off the stage. After two hours of yelling at constant intervals she finally decided it was as good as it was going to get so she let the kids go for the day. She kept a few of the girls to go over the choreography for one of the songs. Rachel kept going back and forth getting water and other things they needed. She was exhausted and hungry. They didn't have any lunch because of the sound check.

Jesse came up to her from behind. "You don't look so good." Rachel turned to see him. He looked tired too and a little sweaty.

"You don't look so good either." He chuckled and looked at himself.

"Well, it's hard being your mom's lead singer." Rachel laughed at that.

"I guess." She turned back and saw Shelby yelling at one girl for the hundredth time, the girl looked like she was about to cry.

"Do you wanna go eat something? It looks like she's still gonna take a while." Rachel didn't think it was such a good idea. Although, they had made their truce so it couldn't be that bad. She stood up and walked to the edge of the stage.

"I'm going to get something to eat, I'm starving. Do you want me to bring you something" Shelby didn't turn around and she kept staring at the girls dancing. "Sure, just bring anything."

Rachel walked out with Jesse. "There's a deli a few blocks down, do you want to go there?" Rachel nodded and Jesse leaded her through the streets. They entered the deli which was almost empty since it was way past lunch time and sat down on a booth near the window. They ordered their food and drinks and Rachel ordered a sandwich to go for Shelby, no mayo.

"So I saw you met Andrea and the others." Rachel nodded through her bite. "They're not really nice. They're like me." Jesse chuckled.

"You're not that bad. " Jesse gave her a hopeful smile. "Well, maybe a little." He fake pouted and she slapped his hand.

He took a bite of his food and looked at her. "I've missed you." Rachel took her time with the food she had on her mouth to give her time to think of a response to that. She took a sip of her coke and put her fork down.

"Jesse, we can't do this again, it hurt too much. Besides, you're leaving for college in the fall." Jesse's face fell. He really thought he would get another chance with her. Maybe if they started again. No plotting to get her to meet her mom and no fake anything, they could really work.

"We can still be friends, right?" Rachel smiled and nodded. She reached out and took his hand.

"Yeah, we can be friends." Jesse looked at their joined hands. He didn't want to let her go but Rachel took her hand away and he suddenly felt empty.

"We should go back. My mom gets in a bad mood if she's hungry and I don't want her to murder that girl." Jesse raised an eyebrow and got up to leave.

"Is she always hungry?" Rachel slapped his arm and pushed him out the door.

"She's not that bad and her methods work. If they didn't you wouldn't have won 3 years in a row." Jesse nodded and liked his arm with hers. Rachel didn't protest and he took it as a good sign.

"I have to admit that, even though I am an amazing lead singer, we couldn't have done what we've done without Ms. Corcoran." They walked through the doors as the girl Shelby was yelling at ran out crying.

"I guess we didn't get here fast enough. I'll see you later Jesse." Rachel waved at him and hurried to look for Shelby. She found her sitting on the floor near the hall entrance. She looked exhausted and angry. Rachel slid on the wall next to her.

"Hey, I brought you a sandwich." Shelby looked at her and kissed her head.

"Thanks baby. God, these kids drive me crazy sometimes!" Rachel started unwrapping the sandwich and gave it to her.

"I think they say the same about you sometimes." She saw Shelby studying the sandwich she had handed her. "Don't worry, I remembered you hate mayo." She handed her a diet coke.

Shelby smiled and gave it a bite. "This is really good, you're the best." Rachel waited until she finished eating.

"Are we done here for the day?" Shelby nodded and rested her head on the wall.

"We should go to the hotel. You look like you might pass out soon." Rachel stood up and held out her hand to help her up. They decided to take a cab since Shelby didn't think she could walk the 10 blocks back to the hotel after being on her feet for more than 4 hours.

As soon as they got to their room, Shelby fell on the couch and took off her heels.

"Remind me to bring a pair of sneakers next year." Rachel laughed and went to her room to change. She came back out after a few minutes.

"Do you need anything else? I'm going to go see if Kate wants to do something before dinner." Shelby smiled. She was glad she had made friends, especially since Rachel didn't have that many friends apart from her Glee club who she got the feeling they respected her more than liked her.

"I'm fine. Do you need any money?" Rachel grabbed her purse and kissed Shelby's forehead.

"No, I have some. I'll be back around 7 and we can order room service." She went down a few floors and knocked on Kate's door. Lisa opened it.

"Hi! Is Kate in?" She gave her a once-over and stepped aside.

"Sure, come on in." She walked in and found Kate lying on her bed with her iPod on and Andrea watching some reality show on TV. Kate smiled at Rachel when she saw her and sat up.

"You wanna go do something?" Kate stood from the bed and nodded and quickly pushed Rachel out of the room.

"Hurry before they decide to follow us." She ran towards the elevators and Rachel ran behind her. They got in and burst out laughing as soon as the doors closed. They got out on the ground floor and walked out of the hotel.

* * *

Shelby got her phone and thought about calling Will. They hadn't spoken since yesterday when he told her he loved her and she panicked, again. She decided that maybe calling him wouldn't be such a good idea so she texted him.

– I miss you –

A few seconds later her phone chirped.

– I miss you too. How was your day? –

– Exhausting. It was like the kids ate something that destroyed their ability to coordinate –

– I'm sure you're overreacting. You're kids are great, they got there. You just have to believe in them. –

She wasn't overreacting, that girl was not doing what she asked her to do and she was bringing down everyone around her.

– I made a girl cry. I'm really exhausted and my throat hurts from all the yelling. –

– Haha you should drink some tea and go to bed early. –

– I will. I wish you were here, you really know how to relax me –

– Oh baby, I wish I was there too. Take a long bath, have some dinner and go to bed. You'll feel better afterwards –

– Ok, I will. Call you tomorrow. –

– Good luck! Love u –

Shelby stared at the last message. She was putting her phone away but she opened it and sent a final text.

– Me too. –

* * *

Rachel and Kate walked around 5th Avenue window shopping for a while. They would occasionally go into a store and try something out but they didn't buy anything. They walked back towards the hotel along Madison Avenue and they decided to go into the Apple store before they went back to the hotel.

"So are you getting back with Jesse?" Rachel gave her a surprised look. She looked through some iPod headphones and thought of maybe buying a pair. "No. Why?"

Kate shrugged. "No reason, it's just that Andrea seemed really pissed about you going to lunch with Jesse. It was kind of funny." They walked out of the store. "So what happened with you guys? He didn't really say anything when he came back to Carmel."

Rachel didn't really know how much to tell Kate. She liked her and she seemed trustworthy. She really hadn't really talked about this with anyone so she decided that this might be good for her.

"I'm not really sure. Things were great until the whole Run, Joey, Run fiasco." Kate gave her a confused look. "I made a video for Glee with him and two other boys but I didn't tell him the other boys were going to be in it. He got really mad about it. Then he went away for spring break and things were ok for a while after he came back. The he just left. And then he cracked an egg on my forehead."

Rachel and Kate sat at one of the couches at the lobby. "Yeah, I heard about that. They said it was pretty awful. Ms. Corcoran was really pissed, she looked like she was gonna kill someone." They sat in silence, both thinking about what Rachel had said.

"But he never said why he came back to Carmel?" Rachel shook her head. "Maybe you should ask him. I mean, if you want to know. I would." Rachel nodded.

"I should go back up. I told my mom I'd be back at 7 for dinner. Do you want to join us? We're just gonna order room service."

"No thanks. I don't think Ms. Corcoran wants to see any of us after today's rehearsal. I was surprised that only one girl cried, she was really angry." Kate got off on her floor and Rachel continued to hers.

Rachel walked into the suite and found Shelby on her PJ's sitting on the couch watching a movie.

"How was your whatever it is you did?" Rachel smiled.

"Good. We window shopped around 5th and Madison." Rachel sat on the couch next to her and Shelby pulled her towards her with her left arm. Rachel snuggled against her side.

"I like this, you know, just you and me hanging out. I think it's one of the best things about having a mom. My dads aren't the sit-down-and-do-nothing type." Shelby laughed and hugged her tighter.

"Well, I can do nothing with you anytime, sweetie." Rachel sighed and they just stayed there doing nothing.

**

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AN: Keep reviewing, it really makes me write faster or maybe it was just because it was a Sunday. We could make an experiment and see if I post sooner if you review :)**


	5. Come Clean

**AN: Ok, I have a random question. Why does everyone have the impression that Shelby can't cook? Almost every fic I've read has her burning something. Anyway, hope you like this and as you have probably noticed you can totally skip my notes and just read haha.**

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Chapter 5: Come Clean

Rachel spent all morning running from one place to another making sure everything was right. Some of the girls had some wardrobe malfunctions and Shelby went nuts trying to fix it. Rachel had to go buy some glue to stick back a heel that broke off a shoe. Around noon she went for lunch with Kate since Shelby was in the middle of another crisis. She made sure she ate something when she got back and then went back to work. By four everything was how it was supposed to be and they were waiting for the two other teams that went before them to perform.

She could feel the tension in the room. Everyone was trying to keep busy but there was nothing left to do but wait. Shelby was sitting in a couch clutching her hands nervously. Rachel brought her a bottle of water and sat next to her. "Calm down, you're gonna have a stroke."

Shelby took the bottle of water and leaned back on the couch. "Thanks." They all looked towards the door when they heard loud cheering. The team that was on had finished; now there was only one left before them. Shelby silently counted to ten, took a sip of water and stood up.

"All right guys, huddle up." She waited for her whole team to gather around her. "This is it. We can win this. You heard that last team, they weren't as good as us and this team isn't either. You are the best, just remember that." They heard cheering again and she steered them towards the stage.

Shelby and Rachel stayed on the side watching their performance. Rachel squeezed Shelby's hand for reassurance and Shelby smiled at her. Everything was amazing, the song choices, their voices, and the choreography. The girl who cried the day before looked like she could have done it in her sleep, it was flawless. Shelby clutched Rachel's hand until the final note was delivered and then the whole place exploded with cheers.

* * *

They all went out to dinner to a pizza place a few blocks away from the hotel. They were very pleased with their performance and everyone was happy and relaxed. Shelby stood up to make a toast.

"I just wanted to congratulate you. You were amazing and I'm sure we're gonna win this. But if we don't, I want you to know that I'm really proud of you." Everyone cheered and some of the boys whistled loudly.

Jesse was sitting across the table from Rachel and he kept throwing her glances and smiling at her. Kate leaned close to Rachel to get her to hear her above all the noise. "Jesse has been looking at you all night." Rachel glanced discreetly towards him and saw that he was looking at her again.

"I know. He's doing it now. What do you think he wants?" Kate laughed.

"Oh I don't know." She said sarcastically. "Have you considered that he wants you back?"

Rachel frowned as she considered it. "But we talked about it and we agreed to be just friends."

Kate rolled her eyes. Rachel was really naïve sometimes. "That doesn't mean he doesn't want you back. You should go talk to him. He's staring at you again."

Rachel looked at him and he waved at her. She waved back weakly. "You really think I should talk to him?"

"Sure, if you just want to be friends you should tell him that and if you don't then you should tell him too. Besides, you wanted to know why he came back to Carmel, right?" Rachel nodded.

"You're right. I'll talk to him on the way back to the hotel."

When they finished their dinner, Rachel lingered behind and gave Jesse a pointed look. He gave her a little nod and walked out. Rachel pulled Kate with her. "Mom, I'll meet you at the hotel. Kate and I just want to take a walk."

"It's kind of late for a walk, don't you think?" Rachel gave her best puppy dog eyes.

"Please. She just wants to show me something real quick. We won't take long." Shelby could never deny her anything when she got that look.

"Fine, but if you're not back 15 minutes after I get to the room I'm calling the police." Rachel jumped up and kissed her cheek.

"Thanks mom!" They waited for her to go out and found Jesse waiting outside. Kate walked ahead and left them alone.

"I wanted to talk to you about something." They walked at a slow pace letting everyone walk ahead a few blocks from them.

"I need to know why you went back to Carmel. You never told me and I thought we were good just before that." Jesse chuckled humorlessly.

"I told you. You broke my heart." Rachel was confused. "How?"

"That thing you did, the video with Finn and Puck, you showed me your reputation was more important than us." Rachel nodded.

"But you stayed after that. You came back from spring break and we were good. You helped me find my mom. Why did you wait to leave?" Jesse couldn't tell her that the only reason he stayed with her was because Shelby sent him to get her to meet her.

"Why do you want to know? I was a jerk. I left without telling you and ended up hurting you more than you hurt me." He stopped and turned to face her. He grabbed both of her hands. "I really am sorry Rachel."

"I know, I'm sorry too." She let go of his hands and kept walking. "But I still don't understand. You stayed. You must have had a reason. Was it just to break my heart closer to Regionals?"

"No, of course not! I would never do that." Jesse raked his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"Then why?" She turned to look at him, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. He brushed her cheek with his thumb.

"I can't tell you." He looked down. He knew it was a lame response but he really couldn't tell her the real reason. Shelby would hate him and it would hurt Rachel too.

Rachel couldn't wrap her head around that. _He can't tell me?_ She stopped walking and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You have to tell me, Jesse. What difference does it make now? You already broke my heart and I got over it. Nothing is ever going to happen between us again. You can't hurt me anymore. Just say it."

Jesse felt cornered. He knew that if he told her, not only he would hurt her again, but he might screw up her relationship with her mom. He saw how happy she was with her and he couldn't bear ruining that. Every time he thought about his failed relationship with Rachel, he reminded himself that he had done it for a bigger purpose. Meeting Shelby had made her really happy. He tried to think of a lie, he even considered just running away and leaving her there. But that wouldn't help; he was stuck in the city for another four days.

"Jesse, please tell me. I need to know." Jesse looked into her eyes and knew he had to come clean. He sighed and looked down.

"Ms. Corcoran asked me to." His voice so low she almost didn't hear him. She had heard him but she wasn't sure she heard him right.

"What did you say?" Jesse looked back up to her. He could see the anger start building up inside her.

"Your mom sent me to find out if you wanted to meet her. Once I knew you did want to meet her, I couldn't leave until it happened. When you guys finally met, there was no point in me staying at McKinley." Rachel was furious.

"So it was all a lie? She sent you there?" Rachel started to walk to the hotel and Jesse had to run to keep up with her.

"No, it wasn't a lie! Once I got to know you I fell in love with you. It's true that it wasn't my original motivation, but I stayed because of that. You wanted to meet her! I was just trying to help you, both of you." Rachel couldn't believe what she was hearing. She reached the hotel lobby and punched the elevator button furiously. When the door opened she held out her hand to stop Jesse from getting in.

"Don't even think you're riding up with me." Jesse saw the door close and he slammed his head against it. _I'm so dead._

* * *

Shelby took off her shoes the second she got into the suite. She dropped her purse on the couch and opened the double doors that led to her room. She threw herself face down on the bed. She was completely exhausted. She had been working nonstop since yesterday. She knew her intensity wasn't good for her. She probably wouldn't have eaten lunch if it hadn't been for Rachel.

She smiled as she thought about Rachel. Bringing her to help had been the best idea she'd ever had. None of the other people she had brought on past years had been as helpful. She was dedicated and didn't panic under stress. She had also helped Shelby to stay calm and always knew the right thing to do or say.

She felt her phone vibrate under her and she groaned as she tried to fish it out of her pocket. She turned around to lie on her back and smiled as she saw Will's name on the screen.

"Hi." Will smiled as soon as he heard her voice. He had been moping around his house doing nothing all day. He knew they performed today so he decided to wait and call her at night but he didn't anticipate that waiting would be so horrible.

"Hey. How did it go?" Shelby smiled as she remembered how her kids totally rocked it.

"It was great, the kids ere awesome." Will laughed, he had told her not to worry about anything. But she wouldn't be Shelby Corcoran if she didn't worry about every single thing.

"I really missed you today. I was cooking dinner with the radio on and I remembered that night when you made that amazing pasta and you were singing, you used the spoon as a microphone and we danced. I had to turn off the radio." Shelby chuckled. She remembered that night. She had had a lot of fun. She always had fun with Will.

"I really miss you too. I would love to have you here to give me a foot rub with those amazing hands of yours, my feet are killing me. I spent most of yesterday and today on my feet and wearing heels was probably not the best idea."

"So you just want me there for my hands?" He said it in mock outrage.

Shelby lowered her voice and purred into the phone. "And your body. Although your hands are quite useful most of the time."

Will groaned. "You can't do that when you're that far from me. And you're still going to stay for another two weeks and a half."

"I was just saying how much I would love to have your hands on me right now." Shelby kept her voice low.

"Stop using your sexy voice on me. You're evil." Shelby laughed at his whiny voice but she decided to stop teasing him because it was also affecting her.

"Fine. You win, no more teasing." They went silent for a bit, not really knowing what else to say but not wanting to hang up either. Shelby yawned.

"You're tired. I should let you sleep." She thought about lying to him and talk to him for a while longer but she couldn't stifle another yawn.

Will opened his mouth to tell her he loved her but he wasn't sure how she'd take it this time. The text she sent him implied that she was opening up to the subject more but he didn't want to push it. "Good night, honey."

"Good night, Will. I'll call you when I'm not so tired." Shelby closed her phone. She watched the ceiling for a while and wondered if Rachel had taken too long already or not.

She jumped when she heard the door slam shut. She sat up and saw Rachel standing in front of her door with a furious look.

"You sent Jesse to seduce me?"

**

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AN: Next chapter is going to be kind of angsty. I felt there has been too much fluff in this story so I decided to throw in some drama. But don't worry, fluffiness always finds its way back.**


	6. Truth or Happiness, Never Both

**AN: I had this sooner than I expected so I decided to post it. I just wanted to say something real quick. Someone reviewed the last chapter but I couldn't reply because it wasn't signed with a pen name or they had their PM off or something. Anyway I really liked this review because it pointed out that sometimes when I'm writing dialogue I'm not that clear so I wrote this chapter with that in mind. I realized that sometimes when something is clear in my head it doesn't mean it's clear when I write it down. Anyway, thanks for reviewing and don't worry about criticizing, it helps.**

**Disclaimer: still don't own Glee**

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Chapter 6: Truth or Happiness, Never Both

"_You sent Jesse to seduce me?"_

Shelby was confused for a fraction of a second and then it dawned on her. She knew. She had dreaded this day since they began their relationship. She had thought about this countless times and yet she didn't know what to say so she just opened her mouth and hoped something coherent would come out.

"I never said seduce, I said befriend." The moment the words came out she knew it was the wrong thing to say. Rachel turned around and walked towards her room. "Rachel, I'm sorry."

Rachel turned back when she reached her room. "Are you sorry you did it or are you sorry I found out? I can't believe you would do that! I can't believe you never told me! I have been wondering why Jesse left this whole time, and it was because he was just there because you sent him. I don't get it? Why would you put me through that?" She went into her room and slammed the door.

Shelby walked across to Rachel's door and tried the handle, it was locked. "Rachel, let me explain. Please open the door." She pressed her forehead to the door and waited.

Rachel sat on the bed and didn't move. She didn't want to see her right now and anything she said would not change the fact that her whole relationship with Jesse, even if he did fall in love with her, was based on a lie.

"Rachel, come on! Open the door." Shelby slid down and sat against the wall next to the door. Rachel didn't answer or move from the bed.

"I know you can hear me so if you're not going to open the door I'm just going to talk anyway." She took a deep breath and ordered her thoughts.

"It was wrong to send Jesse. Although I do feel it's important to clarify I only told him to befriend you, he seduced you all on his own. I'm really sorry, but it was the only way I could think of getting you to find me without breaching the contract I signed with your dads." Shelby looked at the door and saw it was still closed. She reached out and pressed her hand to it.

Rachel watched the ceiling from the bed. She tried to ignore Shelby's voice but she couldn't. She knew her mom loved her and that it seemed like a good idea at the time, but what had hurt her most is that she never told her about it.

"If I had known it would hurt you this much I would have tried to find another way to get close to you." She leaned her head against the wall and wiped away a tear. "Please Rachel, I can't lose you now."

Her voice was only a whisper but Rachel heard her. She didn't want to lose her either but she was too angry to talk to her right now. Tears started streaming down her face and she just lied there staring at the ceiling.

Shelby waited outside the door. She didn't know what else to say or do. She had been crying in silence but after waiting for what seemed like hours she started sobbing loudly. She couldn't see her life without Rachel, not now that she had gotten to know her. She had told her dads that she wouldn't protest if Rachel decided not to see her again and she would stick to what she said, but it would kill her.

She got up and got in bed. It had been an exhausting day and she could barely walk the few feet between Rachel's room and hers. She squeezed her eyes tightly and wished for everything to be better in the morning.

* * *

Rachel got up around 7, took a shower, got dressed and went out into the suite's living room. Shelby's door was closed so she took a piece of paper and left a note on a table before walking out. She needed to talk to someone so she went down to Kate's room. She knocked on the door and Andrea opened it rubbing her eyes. "Do you know what time it is?"

Rachel didn't answer and walked into the room. Kate was still asleep and Rachel hesitated before shaking her shoulder. "Kate! Kate, wake up, I need to talk to you."

Kate turned around and squinted at her. "What's wrong? Did something happen with Jesse last night?"

Andrea arched an eyebrow and looked at Rachel who just ignored her.

"No, it's not about Jesse. Can we go somewhere else and talk?" She pulled on Kate's sheets with every word.

"Alright just let me get dressed."

* * *

Shelby felt the sun hit her face and she opened her eyes. She looked at the clock on the bedside table, it was 7:45. Performances started again at 10 am so she had some time before they had to be there. She felt lousy but she hoped that she could get to talk to Rachel before they left. Maybe they could go have some breakfast. She got up and saw her door was open, she walked to her room but she wasn't there.

Shelby noticed a pink sheet of paper on the table and picked it up.

Mom,  
I need to think about some things, I'll see you later.  
Don't worry, I'm with Kate.  
-Rachel

She brushed her fingers over the paper. At least she didn't go back to calling her Shelby. That was a good sign. She went into the shower and let the warm water relax her. She stood there for a long time not wanting to go out and face the fact that Rachel was angry and that maybe it was irreparable. She knew she should have told her herself about Jesse but she was afraid that this would happen.

She sobbed with her head against the tiles until the water turned cold. She got out and got dressed still feeling miserable.

She still had some time before she had to go down and meet the kids so she took out her phone to call Will. She would usually deal with her problems by herself but ever since she had been going out with him she felt the need to let him help her. Will picked up after a few rings with a sleepy voice.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" She heard him shuffling and groaning a bit.

"It's ok. I should get up anyway, what's up?"

She bit her lip, unsure how to explain what was going on. She never told him either so it was hard for her to explain what was going on. "Rachel's mad at me."

"Teenagers are always mad at someone, it's what they do. Don't worry about it, she'll get over it. Rachel's been mad at me plenty of times, believe me."

"I don't think this is something that's just going to blow away. I really screwed up, Will."

Will could hear that she was really stressed about it and he got worried. "What happened?"

"She found out that I asked Jesse to get close to her so I could meet her." She held her breath waiting for his reaction.

Will sighed and got out of bed. Rachel was probably really pissed about this and with reason. He understood why Shelby had done that but Rachel had had deep feelings for Jesse, so finding out that she had sent him probably devastated her.

"You really screwed up." Shelby almost started crying again when he said this. "Have you talked to her?"

"She didn't let me last night and she left early this morning. I don't know what to do. I can't lose her again." Shelby took a deep breath. She really didn't want to ruin her makeup and have to do it over.

"I'm sure that once you talk to her, she'll realize that you had a good motive, even if you means were all screwed up. She loves you and she's always wanted to have a mother. She will be mad for a while but she'll get over it."

"You really think so?" Shelby shuddered at how vulnerable she sounded. She'd never needed anyone's reassurance but now she needed Will's.

"I do, don't worry about it. Talk to her when she's calmed down, pushing her won't work, she's a lot more like you than you realize. Promise me you will stop worrying so much."

Shelby smiled for the first time that day. "I will."

"I love you. Call me if you need anything."

* * *

"Where are we going?" Rachel was pulled Kate through the hall and into the elevator.

"I don't know. I just have to get out of the hotel right now." Kate looked at Rachel. She looked bad and she hadn't smiled once since she stormed into her room.

The elevator doors opened in the lobby and they hurried out. They crossed the street and walked into Central Park. Rachel made a bee line for a bench nearby and Kate followed her. Rachel didn't say anything. She just sat there looking at her hands resting on her lap so Kate had to start talking.

"Did you talk to Jesse?" Rachel nodded. "Did you ask him why he left?" She nodded again.

Kate looked at her waiting for her to say something but she didn't. "And?"

"He said I broke his heart and that he only stayed as long as he did because my mom asked him to." She started smoothing out imaginary wrinkles on her skirt.

"What did he mean by 'she asked him to'? She told him to stay as you boyfriend? Why?"

"She couldn't contact me herself because she signed a contract when I was born so she asked him to get close to me so he could get us to meet. She said she didn't send him to date me but he apparently fell in love with me at some point, but our whole relationship was based in a lie."

"But it wasn't like that. I think you're overreacting here. Ms. Corcoran sent Jesse so she could meet you. Jesse approaches you and at some point he falls in love. Who cares why he approached you in the first place? Things didn't work out and even when he was heartbroken he stuck around just so you could meet your mom. I think it's kind of sweet actually."

"I'm not mad at Jesse." Rachel didn't really care about Jesse anymore. She was over him and she knew that thing would never work with him.

Kate gave her a sideways glance. She thought Rachel was mad at Jesse and that's why she was all flustered, but now she didn't get anything. "Then what's wrong?"

"I'm mad at Shelby." Rachel was surprised at her sudden use of the name. Ever since they talked and decided to have a relationship she's called her mom. She didn't like calling her Shelby. She shook her head and continued. "She never told me she was the one who sent Jesse to meet me. I was devastated and confused when he left. I thought it was all a plot to make us lose at Regionals. If she'd told me it would have been a lot easier to get over Jesse. How can I trust her after she did that?"

Kate didn't really know what it was like to not know your own mother and then suddenly have her appear in your life, but she imagined it would be kind of weird. Now with this whole Jesse thing it got weirder. She usually talked to her mom about anything and she couldn't imagine not being able to trust her. "Did you tell her anything?"

"I kind of yelled at her when I got to the suite and then locked myself in my room. She said she didn't mean to hurt me."

"Listen, Rachel, I've known Ms. Corcoran for two years now. I've spent around 20 hours a week with her and in all that time I've never seen her as happy as when she's with you, not even when we won Nationals last year. I've seen how proud she is of you." She turned and took Rachel's hands. "Ms. Corcoran is really hard on us, she pushes us, but she has never let us down. She's always there for us when we need her and she doesn't even like us half as much as she loves you."

Rachel looked down and took a deep breath. Everything Kate had said made sense except for one thing. Shelby hadn't always been there for her. She knew she loved her, and Rachel loved her too, but she had left her, twice, and she had lied to her.

"Do you want to go get some breakfast before we have to go watch the other performances?" Kate was surprised by the sudden change of subject but agreed thinking that maybe Rachel had calmed down and accepted the fact that Shelby really wanted the best for her.

**

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AN: Sooooo this was getting kinda long so I cut it here. I know I haven't really resolved anything yet but keep calm and moo with me hahaha. Anyway, I'll try to update soon and if you want to tell me something just review.**


	7. Old Habits Die Hard

**AN: I'm sorry it took me a bit to post this but I sort of had a hard time with it and I'm working on something on Bones. If you like the show I hope you read it when I post it. I hope you like this chapter. R&R.**

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Chapter 7: Old Habits Die Hard

The hotel restaurant was almost empty when Rachel and Kate got there. The sat and ate in silence. Kate could see that Rachel was thinking things over so she decided to give her some space and stayed quiet.

Rachel knew that everything that happened with Jesse was not Shelby's fault. She and Jesse were responsible for whatever happened or didn't happen between them. But still she couldn't help feeling betrayed by Shelby. If she had been the one who told her, maybe it wouldn't have been so bad. But hearing it from Jesse was like taking a punch to the stomach.

She didn't know why she felt that way. In the end it didn't really change anything and Shelby only wanted to meet her and she was really glad that they met. She loved her and she'd always dreamed of having her mother in her life. She was mad at Shelby, but maybe she did overreact. Maybe she was still mad at Jesse and she directed her anger towards Shelby.

She looked at Kate, she was really nice and she had really helped her. She was right about Shelby. Ever since she had committed herself to being Rachel's mother, she had always been there for her. She always helped her when she needed her, or listened to her. She even learned vegan recipes and stocked her kitchen with vegan snacks. "Do you think I overreacted?"

Kate looked up from her plate. "A little bit. She was wrong not telling you but sending Jesse to meet you was just as if she'd introduced you indirectly. You can't blame her for what happened."

Rachel nodded and took another bite from her fruit plate. She decided to talk to Shelby when she saw her.

* * *

Shelby checked her makeup one more time. She had cried again when she hung up with Will so she'd had to fix her makeup. She didn't feel like herself anymore. The last time she cried like this was the day her father died, and even then, she only cried when she was in her room and didn't tell anyone about it. Now she had called Will. She didn't like being this needy, clingy person.

This thing with Rachel made her remember why she didn't engage with people, people hurt you. She had trusted Jesse and look where that got her. Then she had let her guard down with Rachel and that also helped Will get in, but she was going to fix that. If Rachel didn't want to talk to her anymore, let her do it. She was Shelby fucking Corcoran and she wasn't going to start letting people push her around, even if it was her daughter. She had done something wrong, but she apologized. If Rachel chose not to accept that, it wasn't her problem anymore.

Will was a whole different problem. He loved her, or so he said. And she knew that if she kept seeing him, she would love him too, if she didn't already. And with love came this obnoxious need for the other person. She felt safe with him, like he could save her from anything, but she hated that feeling. She could save herself; she didn't need a knight in shining armor. She decided that, at least for now, she would not communicate with Will.

She went down to the lobby and found the first Vocal Adrenaline members starting to gather and wait for the others to walk to Radio City Music Hall. She walked to them but she didn't see Kate or Rachel with them.

Soon, most of the kids were there so she started telling them their schedule for the day and sending them out in groups. She felt a hand touch her elbow and tug on her sleeve. She turned and saw Rachel standing behind her.

Rachel was nervous; she had yelled at her the day before and then ignored her when she tried to explain. She didn't know if she was mad or hurt or something. She took a deep breath and looked at her.

"Mom?" Shelby's heart did a back flip in her chest when she heard Rachel call her that but she quickly recovered. Rachel took a step towards her. "Can we talk?"

Shelby looked around. There were still some kids waiting for her. "I'm kind of busy right now, Rachel. We'll talk later." She turned around and approached a group of kids.

Rachel watched her walk away. She was hurt, she had begged her to talk to her the night before and now she was busy? She felt someone grab her arm and she turned to find Jesse pulling her to a corner of the lobby. She pulled her arm free with an angry look. "What do you want Jesse?"

"Did you say something about what I told you to Ms. Corcoran?" He had a seriously panicked aspect and he looked as if he hadn't slept at all. His hair was sticking out in every direction and he had bags under his eyes.

"Jesse, I don't want to talk about this anymore!" She tried to walk away but he stopped her.

"It wasn't her fault! Everything I did, I did it because I wanted to. She only asked me to meet you. I was the one who fell in love with you, I was the one whose heart you broke and I was the one who left you! She didn't do anything except wanting to be a part of your life." Jesse was desperate. He kept running his hand through his hair and shaking his arms around. He really didn't mean to ruin Rachel and Shelby's relationship. Shelby was his mentor; he would never do something to hurt her. Besides, she would probably kill him if she found out.

"Why do you care anyway? We're not together anymore, I've moved on."

"Really? Then why are you so mad about this? If you really didn't care about me, you wouldn't be so mad." Jesse looked at her, defying her to contradict him.

Rachel had already thought about that, but she wasn't going to give Jesse the satisfaction of knowing she might still have feelings for him. "I already told her Jesse, you're too late."

Jesse's triumphant look disappeared and was replaced by one of alarm. He looked at Shelby who was ushering the last group of kids out of the hotel. She turned around to check if someone was left behind and when she saw Jesse he could see fire in her eyes.

"Rachel and Jesse, we're leaving. Hurry up!"

Rachel left Jesse standing there and scurried out of the hotel without looking at Shelby. Jesse walked up to her, half afraid that she might rip his head off right there.

"I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone." He got out as fast as he could, feeling Shelby's scorching gaze on his back.

Shelby walked out of the hotel following the stream of black Vocal Adrenaline jackets everyone was wearing. She knew she shouldn't have been so cold with Rachel but she couldn't help it. She had begged her to talk yesterday and she refused. Besides, it wasn't the right time or place to talk. Her students were everywhere and she was busy.

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't see that someone had stopped in front of her. She crashed into Kate and made her fall.

"I'm really sorry Kate. I didn't see you stop. Are you ok?" She helped Kate get up and brushed dust off her sleeve.

"Yeah I'm fine. I'm sorry; I was looking at that display." She pointed towards a shop window.

"Well, since I literally bumped into you, can we talk about something?" Kate didn't really want to talk to Shelby. She was Rachel's friend and she couldn't just tell her what she said, but Shelby was her coach, she had to tell her if she asked.

They started to walk together. "Did Rachel say something about me?"

Kate smiled. Ms. Corcoran was usually very direct. "Well, yeah. She talks about you sometimes."

"You know that's not what I mean, Kate." She gave her a Coach Corcoran look and Kate suddenly regretted stopping at that shop.

She sighed. "She was really mad. She came and woke me up around 7, we walked to the park and she told me what happened. Then we went for breakfast and she looked like she had calmed down."

"She tried to talk to me before we left and I told her I was busy." She said it mostly to herself, still trying to make sense of everything that had happened since yesterday.

"Can I give you some advice?" Kate asked tentatively, afraid she might be overstepping.

Shelby was surprised that a 16 year old girl was offering her advice but she nodded.

"I haven't really known Rachel that long but she seems like a reasonably smart person. Just let her understand what she's feeling first and then talk to her. I think she still hasn't gotten over Jesse so she might have misdirected her anger." Kate didn't look at Shelby afraid she might have said something she wasn't supposed to.

Shelby didn't say anything for a while as she thought about what Kate had said. Rachel had already tried to talk to her once so she might try again. Even if she was intent on going back to being as she was before Rachel, she couldn't shut her own daughter out. She would let Rachel be and talk to her when she asked again. If she didn't ask again she would go to plan B, being her old bitchy self. She wished thing were less confusing when it came to Rachel. She wanted to be her mother in every sense of the word but she felt vulnerable when she was with her.

"Thanks Kate." She looked at the girl who had barely taken a breath since she spoke. She was really smart, smarter than most of her Glee kids. She cleared her throat and continued to walk.

They reached Radio City Music Hall and they took their seats to watch the other performances. Kate sat next to Rachel and leaned to her so she wasn't overheard. "Ms. Corcoran just asked me about you."

"What did you say?" Rachel didn't know if she was glad Shelby had asked about her of mad because she was changing her mind about her every five minutes. She did that when they first met, she wanted to be in her life, then she didn't then she did. It was exhausting and very confusing.

"That you were mad and that you would talk to her when you were ready."

"I already tried to talk to her and 'she was busy'" Rachel made air quotes to emphasize her annoyance and crossed her arms on her chest.

"She seemed sorry about that. You should try to talk to her again."

Rachel watched the performance. It was a team from New Orleans and they were really good. She remembered she went there to get information for next year so she decided to stop worrying about Jesse and her mom for the time being and concentrate on the competition.


	8. Go Let it Out

**AN: I decided to try something a little different this chapter, I kept going back and forth between Shelby and Rachel. Let me know if you find it confusing so I don't do it again. Also, you should thank the people from the Bones fandom for making me feel bad that my story only got one review making me write this faster since you're all really nice here. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee.**

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Chapter 8: Go Let it Out

The red light on Shelby's phone kept blinking. She had three missed calls from Will that she didn't intend to return, not now at least. She had spent all morning watching the competition. At lunch she went with some of the other coaches to a restaurant a few blocks away. She didn't really like them but they had invited her and she didn't want to be rude.

Rachel had hoped to speak to her, maybe go somewhere for lunch, but she saw her leave with the other coaches so she went with Kate instead. She had expected for Shelby to tell her something at some point, at least that she was leaving for lunch, but she didn't. She just left her there like she was another one of her students.

The rest of Shelby's day was spent watching the rest of the performances. Some were really good and others lacked that spark that made the audience go wild and the judges nod in approval. They still had another day of performances before they gave the results, but if tomorrow was like today, they would win easily.

The light on Shelby's phone blinked accusingly from the bedside table again. She had gotten to the room a few minutes ago and Rachel wasn't there. She didn't look for her when she left Radio City Music Hall but she supposed she had left with Kate or some of the other kids. It was still early and as long as she was back before dinner time she had no intention of calling her and finding out where she was.

Rachel walked back to the hotel with Kate. They hadn't talked much all day after breakfast. Rachel looked really hurt and sometimes Kate worried that she might start to cry. Rachel kept playing over Shelby's look when she told her she was busy. It was cold and her voice had an exasperated tone to it, like she was explaining something to a kid for the hundredth time. She really didn't understand how she had gotten there, it all happened too fast.

Her anger at Shelby had subsided, she was still mad that she never told her she sent Jesse, but now she was mostly hurt that she had rejected her so blatantly that morning. She just wanted this to be over and go back to ordering room service and watching TV on the couch with her.

They reached the hotel and got into the elevator. Kate stopped at the door when it reached her floor. "Are you going to be OK? You can stay with us if you want."

Rachel smiled and shook her head. "I have to talk to her eventually. I'd better get over with it now."

Kate got out of the elevator and waved "Good luck. You know where to find me if you need anything."

Shelby heard the door open and immediately tensed up. She was sitting on the bed reading a book with her door open. She figured that would make it easier if Rachel wanted to talk to her. She took a deep breath and waited to see if Rachel went straight to her room. Part of her, the old Shelby, hoped that she did but a small part of her still wanted Rachel to come to her.

Rachel saw Shelby's door was open and took it as a good sign. She walked the short distance between her and the door and stopped just before she got to the threshold to gather some courage.

After what seemed like an eternity Shelby saw Rachel appear in front of her door.

"Can we talk now?" Rachel looked at Shelby with a look that was part hope and part sadness.

Shelby let out the breath she was holding and closed the book she was reading. "Sure."

Rachel went around and sat on the other side of the bed without looking at Shelby. She didn't really know how to begin.

The turmoil on Rachel's face was evident and Shelby felt the need to reach out to her and hug her but she controlled that need. Instead she tapped her fingers on her book nervously.

The tapping Shelby was doing was not helping Rachel think. Was she in a hurry to get back to her stupid book or what? With every tap Rachel felt all the anger she had held back come bubbling up to the surface. She started talking, her voice soft but full of anger. "You could have told me. I know that whatever happened between me and Jesse wasn't your fault but you could have told me."

Shelby felt as if a knife was plunged through her lungs. She couldn't breathe. The accusation and the tone of her voice hurt her more than anything. She would have preferred she had yelled at her, at least she could have yelled back but this had left her speechless. Her finger had stopped moving the second Rachel started talking. She felt completely paralyzed.

It took her a few seconds to recompose and with the pain also came anger. Anger at herself for letting this get to her so much and anger at Rachel for making her feel like this.

"I already said I was sorry Rachel, I don't know what else you want from me." She said it with a firm voice that didn't reveal her pain or her anger. It sounded detached, cold and almost bored.

Rachel felt her eyes well up but she managed to push the tears down. She got up from the bed and turned to Shelby shaking her finger accusingly in her direction.

"I went through hell and back with him and you knew it and you never said anything. I fell in love with him." Rachel started pacing around the bed, throwing her arms around. "I almost slept with the guy for crying out loud! Then I screwed up and I thought he would leave but he stayed, he stayed, and you know why? Because he wasn't done with your little favor, that's why."

Shelby was shocked to hear she almost slept with Jesse. If she was mad at him before, she was furious now. She would kill the little sleazebag.

Rachel had made her way to where Shelby was seating and she stopped a few feet from her. She plopped down on the bed exhausted from her rant.

When she started talking again her voice was no longer angry. "And when he was done with what you asked him to do, he just left without saying anything. And I didn't understand it, I really didn't, but now I do." She turned to look at Shelby, tears falling down her cheeks. "I know you didn't mean for any of that to happen, but it did and I'm really sorry for yelling at you but you could have said something."

She started sobbing, pressing her hands to her face and shaking uncontrollably. Shelby scooted over to her and hugged her. Rachel pressed her face to her shoulder and wrapped her arms around her waist. Shelby rubbed her back and pressed her cheek to the top of her head.

"I'm so sorry Rachel." She whispered over and over, trying to calm the crying girl in her arms.

Finally, Rachel's sobs faded away and she pulled back rubbing her eyes. Shelby passed her a tissue and she blew her nose noisily. She took a few deep breaths and then hugged her mom again, this time really tight.

Shelby chuckled and brushed her hair. "Are we good now?"

Rachel nodded refusing to let her go. Shelby sighed in contentment. She loved Rachel more than anything and she decided not to think about what she had promised herself for now. Everything was right again. She could go back to being a bitch tomorrow.

**

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AN: I know I said you were really nice but, I was doing some math (yes, I'm, one of those people who actually like maths) and I found something really interesting. Every chapter gets an average of 500 hits, give or take, and an average of 15 reviews. That's 3%. So I wanted to encourage my little silent readers to tell me what you think. It's not a threat, I'm not gonna do anything if you don't review but I would really love to hear from you.**


	9. Don't Let me Down

**AN: Thanks for your reviews! My little non-threat worked. I should feel bad but I don't, I'm a review junkie. I want to thank starophie for an idea she gave me. It's still in development stage but I think it might turn out good, there's a little bit in this chapter though. I hope you like this and, as always, reviews are highly appreciated.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee.**

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Chapter 9: Don't Let me Down

After making up, they went out to dinner. It was nice, just like before the incident. They talked about the performances they had seen that day. Shelby helped Rachel analyze what was wrong and what was right with each performance so that Rachel could do the same with New Directions and help them improve. They stayed away from personal topics like Jesse or the fact that Shelby's phone rang more than once and she ignored it.

They walked back to the hotel and each went into their room to sleep. Shelby got her phone out and checked it. She had two new missed calls from Will and a text message.

– Is everything ok? I just want to know how things went with Rachel. Call me. –

She didn't want him to think something bad had happened so she decided to text him back.

– Everything's fine. –

She stared at the text for a while before hitting the send button. It wasn't a complete lie. Things were fine, she had made up with Rachel and now that she had decided to take control of her life she felt better, liberated. Things weren't exactly fine between the two of them but she couldn't just break up with him from New York through a text. She didn't even know if she wanted to break up with him, she just didn't want to talk to him until she figured it out.

Will stood staring at his phone when he got the text. What was that supposed to mean? Did she make up with Rachel? Why wasn't she picking up her phone if everything was fine? He thought of calling her again but he couldn't stand listening to an electronically generated voice asking him to leave a message again.

He thought back to what had happened before she stopped answering his calls. _She_ had called _him _crying. He had been supportive; at least he thought so at the time. Maybe he said something wrong? He didn't really remember his exact words but she had said she'd call him when she worked things out. He'd called her a couple of times during the day to see how she was. She had sounded really bad and he was worried about her, but she never picked up. At first she'd thought that she was busy, it was still early and he didn't know at what time she got out of the competition. He called her after 8 pm when he knew she would be free, but she still didn't pick up.

He had started to worry that something might have happened and thought about calling Rachel but decided to wait. If they were still not talking, Shelby would probably be mad at him. He had sent the text as a last effort to get in touch with her.

He had expected she would call him or at least send his something more than 'Everything's fine'. That clearly indicated everything was certainly not fine but he didn't know if it was about Rachel or about them. He decided to give her some space. She obviously didn't want to be bothered so he just sent her a text.

– Ok… Good night. –

Shelby smiled involuntarily as she read Will's text. She knew that her text had been less than satisfying but Will got that she didn't feel like talking right now. He was very sweet and thoughtful. She chided herself and immediately abandoned that line of thought. She put her phone away and went to sleep.

* * *

Shelby got up early the next day and left the room. She left Rachel a note on the table saying she had something to do before they left for the day and that she would see her in the lobby at 9:30 with the rest of the kids. She went down a few floors and knocked on one of the rooms. A sleepy looking kid in boxers opened the door but opened his eyes widely as he saw who was on the other side. "Ms. Corcoran, hi. I thought we still had a couple of hours before we had to leave."

Shelby ignored the flustered kid. "Is Jesse up? I need to talk to him." She thought of pushing through the door but the idea of being inside a room were three teenage boys were staying made her cringe. The kid disappeared inside the room and Jesse appeared in a few minutes. He clearly had just gotten out of bed and thrown on the first thing he found. His t-shirt was very wrinkled and his hair was sticking out in all directions.

Shelby gave him a once over and then turned around. "Come, I have to talk to you and I can't do it in the hall. We're taking a walk."

Jesse followed her, no questions asked. If Ms. Corcoran wanted to take a walk, you took a walk, end of discussion.

They got into the elevator and Shelby never gave a sign that she acknowledged Jesse's presence. She didn't even look at him. She walked out of the hotel, with him in tow and crossed the street. She walked into the park and out of the path to a fairly secluded place. She suddenly stopped and Jesse stood there, watching her back waiting for her to say or do something.

He was scared, terrified really. After the look she threw him yesterday he had been waiting, actually dreading, this moment. He had no idea what she was going to do but he had decided to take responsibility for his actions and take whatever she threw at him.

Shelby really liked Jesse, he was her star. She had trusted him with Rachel, she had even been happy when she saw them kissing. She thought he was a nice enough guy and, even though she had no right to have an opinion on who dated her daughter, she approved of Jesse. That was why it hit her harder when he told Rachel and when she found out he had almost slept with her. He betrayed her trust and it wasn't something she gave away to anyone.

Shelby took a deep breath and turned to face him. Sparks were shooting out of her eyes. He'd only seen her that angry once and it was when a girl almost cost them Nationals a couple of years ago. The girl transferred schools after that.

He started shaking uncontrollably. He knew it wasn't very manly of him but he couldn't help it. Shelby's silence wasn't helping either. He couldn't take it anymore so he took a tentative step in her direction. "I'm really sorry Shelby. I know I shouldn't have told her but I couldn't keep lying to her. I'm really, really sorry. I was just trying to do the right thing."

"The right thing? Does trying to sleep with my daughter sound like the right thing to do?"

Jesse almost choked at that. How did she know that? Why would Rachel tell her that? He started babbling incoherently trying to find a way to explain. He was the one who asked Rachel to do it. But when she said she wasn't ready he understood and… "We didn't do it!"

"That's all you have to say for yourself? You didn't do it? I trusted you Jesse and you let me down. You knew she was my daughter. I'm really disappointed." Shelby crossed her arms and turned away from Jesse, stepping a few feet away from him.

Jesse could have taken anything except disappointing Shelby. He idolized her and all he wanted was her approval. Every time she said something good about him it made him feel like he could do anything. She always strived for excellence and he knew that she was always going to be his hardest judge. Making her proud was the only thing he ever wanted and now he had disappointed her.

He closed the distance between them and moved his hand towards her but stopped short. He knew he shouldn't touch her; it would only make things worse. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. If there's anything I can do, anything."

Shelby turned back around. "I'm sorry Jesse but there's nothing you can do to change the fact that I don't trust you anymore. At least you're going to college next year and I don't have to see you anymore."

She walked away leaving him standing there and shaking. He felt a tear roll down his cheek and he wiped it away furiously. He was just doing what she asked him to. Falling for Rachel hadn't been part of the plan but it just happened. Of course he wanted to sleep with her, they were teenagers, what did she expect them to do, hold hands?

He knew he was going to college soon and he shouldn't care about what Shelby or Rachel thought, but he did. He still had feelings for Rachel and Shelby had been more of a parent than his actual parents. He knew he was a huge disappointment for his dad, he wanted him to be a jock but he had never been into running around mindlessly. He was a performer, and a damn good one. Shelby had helped him reach his true potential. He owed her everything and he couldn't leave like that. He had to find a way to make things right.

* * *

Kate was woken up by giggles. She didn't open her eyes immediately. She could hear Andrea and Lisa whispering about something. She turned and saw Lisa elbow Andrea and they both shut up.

Kate rubbed her eyes and looked up at them. "Morning"

Andrea smiled. "Morning Katie, we were just planning what we're doing after we win. Ms. Corcoran said we could vote on where we wanted to go. We were thinking the Burger Joint."

Kate hated when she called her Katie. "Ok… I really don't care where we go." She got out of bed and eyed them suspiciously. As soon as she closed the bathroom door she heard them giggle again. Something was going on and she didn't think it was good.

* * *

Rachel went down to the lobby and saw Kate sitting on one of the couches. She waved and ran to her.

"Hey! How was it? Are you guys good now?"

"Yeah, I yelled some more but in the end we made up. Everything's right with the world again."

Kate smiled at Rachel. She could see why she and Jesse got along so well. Everything got blown out of proportion, the good and the bad.

They had breakfast at the hotel again and then went into the lobby to meet with the rest of the team. Shelby was standing with a group of kids barking orders.

Kate leaned down and whispered on Rachel's ear. "I thought that making up with you would chill her out a bit again, I guess I was wrong."

Rachel frowned and they made their way to Shelby.

"Hi mom, is everything ok?"

Shelby sighed exasperated. "Some kid just lost his room key. It's like I'm dealing with 5 year olds." She stormed off towards the front desk to ask for a replacement key.

Rachel and Kate shrugged and sat down at one of the couches to wait. Jesse was sitting on the other side of the lobby with his face on his hands. Kate saw him and elbowed Rachel.

"What's with him? He looks terrible."

Rachel looked in his direction. He looked like he was just run over by a train. "Do you think I should go talk to him?"

"Weren't you mad at him?" Kate arched an eyebrow.

"Well yes, but that doesn't mean I don't care." Rachel crossed her arms in front of her chest and after debating with herself for a bit she stood up and walked up to him.

She kicked his shoe gently and he looked up. His eyes were read as if he had been crying or something.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Jesse rubbed his nose with his sleeve and sniffed. For a second he looked like he was going to tell her but he got up.

"You shouldn't be talking to me Rachel. I'm going on ahead, I can't be waiting anymore. I don't think Ms. Corcoran's going to care anyway." He walked away and left a very confused Rachel watching his back disappear through the doors.

KAte walked towards Rachel. "What's his problem?"

Rachel kept looking at the door. "I have no idea."


	10. Zombie

**AN: I'm sorry it took me a bit. I wasn't really sure how to handle the whole Shell situation. I'm still not sure about this but I guess it's not going to get any better. I totally made up the musical they went to see, it's kind of weird. I hope you like this. R&R  
**

* * *

Chapter 10: Zombie

Shelby found Rachel and took the seat next to her. There was a team on stage so the lights were all off but Rachel could sense she was really tense. She reached over and took Shelby's hand. Shelby smiled and gave her hand a little squeeze. Rachel felt her relax a bit and she smiled to herself. She had really missed her mom and she took comfort in knowing that she could do something for her too, even if it was just holding her hand when she was stressed.

The lights came on and they stood up. It was time for lunch and then there were a few performances left.

"I'm having lunch with the other coaches again." Shelby told Rachel with a scowl. She handed her some money for lunch. "Take care, ok? And don't go too far."

Rachel rolled her eyes at Shelby, but hugged her anyway. "I won't." She felt Shelby stiffen a bit and stepped away from her.

She placed her hand on Rachel's shoulder. "I have to go. I'll see you later. Maybe we can do something afterwards since this is over earlier today, tell Kate."

Rachel stood there looking at her leave. She had been a little distant since they fought but maybe she was just stressed because the announced the winner tomorrow. She walked out with Kate and they walked around deciding where to go. They were walking in front of the Rockefeller rink when they saw Jesse sitting on one of the benches still looking miserable.

"Maybe you should try to talk to him this time, he already blew me off" Rachel pushed Kate in Jesse's direction. She stopped just before him and turned around to look at Rachel who nodded in encouragement.

"Hi, Jesse, I… are you ok?"

Jesse looked at her with a puzzled look and shook his head. Kate sat next to him on the bench and looked down at her feet, waiting for him to say something.

"I'm just having a bad day, the worst in fact." He gave a humorless chuckle.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Kate and Jesse had never actually been friends. They didn't dislike each other but since Jesse was a senior and Kate was a sophomore they didn't run in the same circles.

Jesse shook his head again and Kate didn't really know what else to do. She threw Rachel a defeated look but she shook her arms motioning for her to try again.

"Rachel's worried about you. We are going to get something to eat; you want to come with us?"

"I shouldn't be with Rachel right now. Thanks for trying though. Tell Rachel I'm fine and that I'll catch up with you guys later."

Kate stood up and walked back to where Rachel was standing. "He said he's just having a bad day and that he might catch up with us later." They walked away and Rachel looked at him from the corner of her eye before they turned. He really did look like a mess. He looked like something inside him had died and he was in autopilot.

* * *

Shelby was walking back to the Hall when she got a text. She took out her phone and read it.

– I didn't know if I should call you. It seemed like you didn't want to talk. I don't know if I should be worried. I really miss the sound of your voice. –

Shelby closed her phone and put it back in her purse without answering. She found Rachel already there and she made her way towards her.

"I think we will be out by 5, you want to go catch a show or something? My friend Liz's show starts at 7 and then we could go have dinner somewhere." She turned to Kate. "You can come too if you like."

Kate and Rachel both nodded. Shelby smiled. "Great! Let's go in then."

The rest of the performances were good but not great. They left and took the subway to 1st Avenue and then walked to a small theatre near 11th Street. They bought their tickets and took their seats.

The show was a musical called "Are You Still Alive?" and it was about a woman, played by Shelby's friend, who fell in love with a guy who then was turned into a zombie and tried to eat her brain. In the end she sacrifices herself and turns into a zombie too so they can be together. The songs weren't that bad and Rachel thought her mom's friend had a really good voice, although the actor playing the zombie tended to slur his words a so much he sounded drunk most of the time.

When it ended Shelby turned to Rachel and Kate. "I'm going to say hello to Liz and see if she wants to come with us to dinner. Wait here."

She walked backstage and found Liz's changing room. She leaned on the doorframe and cleared her throat.

The woman turned and squealed. "Shelby! What are you doing here? I thought you weren't free until next week." She stood up and hugged her.

She was shorter than Shelby, with blonde hair and thin. "I got out early today and thought I might suffer through your play now rather than later. We're going to dinner, are you free?"

"Sure! You brought Rachel? I can't wait to meet her. Let me just take this stupid zombie make up off."

* * *

Rachel kept bouncing her leg up and down and it was getting on Kate's nerves. Kate put her hand on Rachel's knee to stop her but Rachel started doing it again as soon as she took her hand away.

"What is wrong with you? Why are you so nervous?"

Rachel chewed on her bottom lip. "I've never met a friend of my mom. What if she doesn't like me?"

"Who cares? It's not as if your mom is going to stop talking to you. Besides, Ms. Corcoran doesn't seem like the type who cares about what people think."

"You're right." They heard footsteps to their right and Rachel got up. "Here they come."

Liz saw Rachel standing there and thought of how much she looked like Shelby when she was younger. Shelby walked up to Rachel and put her hand on her shoulder.

"Liz, this is Rachel, my daughter, and that's Kate, she's part of my team."

Liz shook Kate's hand. "Nice to meet you Ms…"

"Call me Liz. I might be her age but I'm not your coach." Kate smiled, she liked her.

Liz walked up to Rachel and hugged her. Rachel wasn't expecting that but she awkwardly wrapped her arms around the woman.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you." She took Rachel by the shoulders and pulled her back to study her. "She looks just like you S. Does she have your voice too?"

Shelby smiled. "Hers is better."

Rachel blushed and looked down at her feet. This whole situation was starting to make her very uncomfortable.

"Then she must be amazing." Liz said with a smile and let go of Rachel.

They walked out of the theatre and stopped outside. Shelby turned to Liz with a smile and asked. "So, dinner. Life cafe?"

Liz smiled back and started to walk. "Life cafe. I haven't seen you in ages, you look really good."

Kate and Rachel walked a few steps behind them watching the two of them.

"Thanks. You look good too. You were great by the way. You weren't kidding when you said it was a weird story."

Liz chuckled. "Yeah well, getting a decent job is not that easy. You should know, although you seem to be doing pretty good now."

Shelby smiled and looked back at Rachel and Kate. "Yeah, I am."

They arrived at the restaurant and a tall guy in an apron hurried to say hello to Liz and get her a table.

Shelby looked around "Wow, this place has really changed."

"Yeah, this is not starving artist exclusive anymore."

They ordered their drinks and studied the menus for a while. Liz didn't even look at it and continued to chat.

"Any new guys in your life?"

Shelby choked on her drink and coughed a bit. She knew this was coming she just hoped Rachel wasn't there when it did.

"I'm sort of seeing someone."

Rachel scoffed. "Sort of seeing someone? You practically live together. Every time I call you you're either with him or going to see him."

Liz arched an eyebrow in Shelby's direction. Shelby sighed. "We don't live together. We might spend a lot of time together but we each have our apartments. Can we stop talking about Will now?"

Liz knew Shelby well enough to know when she was freaking out about a guy so she let it rest. Rachel was studying her menu again and discussing her options with Kate so she didn't really notice Shelby's exasperated tone.

They ordered and Liz started asking things to Rachel. "So you sing too?"

Rachel smiled and nodded. "I'm in a Glee club in another school."

Liz turned to Kate. "And you're with Shelby, right?" Kate nodded. "Is she really hard? Because let me tell you, when we used to rehearse together she was a real pain in the ass. Every single thing I did was wrong."

Shelby gave her a look. "Hey, I wasn't that bad. And besides, you kept doing it wrong. I'm going to the bathroom and I'd appreciate it if you don't criticize me while I'm gone." She stood up and left her phone on the table next to Rachel.

Liz waited for her to be gone and turned back to the girls. "She wasn't that bad actually. She helped me a lot and once you get to know her she's really a sweet person."

Shelby's phone started ringing and Rachel saw Mr. Schue's name blinking on the screen. She didn't think it would be wrong to answer and pass it to her mom when she came back so she took the phone.

"Hi Mr. Schue, it's Rachel."

"Hi Rachel, is your mom there?"

Rachel looked around and didn't see her coming back. "She'll be right back, do you want to call in a few minutes, I can tell her you called."

"No, I can wait." Will doubted she'd pick up later. "Is she ok?"

Rachel frowned. "I guess. She seems fine, why?"

"She's just been weird lately."

Rachel saw Shelby walking back from the bathroom. "She's coming back, I'll put her on. Bye Mr. Schue!"

She passed Shelby the phone. "It's Mr. Schue."

Shelby took the phone and walked out of the restaurant. She really didn't feel like talking to Will right now but she couldn't just hang up on him. She took a deep breath and pulled the phone to her ear. "Hi Will."

Will couldn't help to smile as he heard her voice. "Hi, I've been trying to get a hold on you. What's going on?"

"Nothing Will, I've just been busy. I'm working, remember?"

Will noted the strain in her voice. He didn't want to push her but he knew that if he didn't do it now he might not have a chance to talk to her until she came back. "Shelby, I know something's wrong. Did I do something?"

_Besides being adorable and loving and just freaking perfect?_ "No Will, you didn't do anything. I'm just tired and this whole thing with Rachel stressed me out a lot and…" She really didn't want to talk about this over the phone but he had asked.

"And what? Shelby talk to me."

"And I don't know if this whole thing with you and me is going to work."

Wills heart sunk. "What?"

Shelby raked her hand through her hair. She had to think of something believable fast other than I'm terrified to fall for you. "I've been thinking and maybe we're just not right, you know? I mean, we're very different and it's not a good time. You just finalized your divorce a few months ago and I'm just starting this thing with Rachel. I think this time away has given me some perspective. We were never going to work Will."

Will clutched the phone tighter. "I don't believe you. You can't just drop this on me now; we're too far into it. You're giving up just like that? We haven't had any real problems yet."

"I know, that's why I think it's better to get out of this before we do and we end up hating each other."

"I could never hate you, I lo…"

"Don't say it Will. You're only going to make it harder. We'll talk about it when I get back. I'm really sorry." She hung up the phone and leaned on the wall.

* * *

**AN: Just to clarify, and I have nothing against Lea, she's awesome, but the comment made by Shelby about Rachel's voice was purely fictional for fluff purposes only. No one has a better voice than Idina. Ok, crazy fanzel comment over.**


	11. Perfume and Promises

**AN: Hey! I'm glad you liked last chapter and yes, I did think of Kristin Chenoweth when I described Liz. I hope you like this one, it's angsty and fluffy and kind of all over the place. R&R!**

* * *

Chapter 11: Perfume and Promises

Liz looked at the door with a worried expression. She turned to Rachel who was telling Kate about some sort of list someone posted at her school that she didn't really get. "Rachel, who was that on the phone?"

"Mr. Schue, he's my mom's boyfriend. He's my Glee club coach."

Liz nodded and turned back towards the door. "I'm going to go check on your mom, I'll be right back."

She walked out of the restaurant and found Shelby leaning on the wall of the next building. She saw her wipe away a tear and sniffle a bit.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Shelby stood straight when she heard her and turned around so she wouldn't see her crying.

"Nothing, I'll be right in."

She heard her whimper so she walked around to face her. Her cheeks were red and her eyeliner was a bit crooked.

"Sweetie, what happened?" She grabbed her hand a looked her in the eye. "I'm guessing it has to do with your "complicated" relationship with that guy. Rachel told me he was the one on the phone. Do you want me to go and kick his ass?"

Shelby chuckled and wiped another tear away. "No, he's great. I'm the one whose ass you should kick."

"You chickened out again, huh?"

Shelby would have been surprised if she had been talking to someone else but Liz knew her too well. She nodded and looked away.

"Do you love him?"

Shelby couldn't contain the sob that escaped her. "I don't know, maybe. I just don't know how to love someone. I've been alone for too long and I hate feeling like I need someone else to be happy."

"You learned to love Rachel, right?"

"Yeah, that's not going so well either. We had a fight the other day. I think we're good now but that's when I realized I can't get too attached to people."

"Shelby, you're her mother. It would be weird if you didn't fight at some point. You can't go tip toeing around life. Sometimes some people are worth the risk."

"How do I know who is?" Liz had rarely seen Shelby so vulnerable.

She hugged her tight. "You can't know. But if you like this guy as much as I think you do, he's worth it. You've always been a very good judge of character. You let me in, didn't you?"

Shelby laughed and started to walk back in. "I didn't really have a choice. We lived in a shoe box. It was either letting you in or listening to you singing out of key for hours. I had to help you out."

Liz gave Shelby a little push with her shoulder as they approached the table. "You know you adored me from the beginning. I'm adorable."

Shelby sat back down next to Rachel and found her food was already on the table. "Of course you are. This looks great."

Rachel threw Shelby a suspicious look. She could see faint red streaks on her face and she didn't clean the smudge in her eyeliner properly. She leaned into her and asked her in a soft voice. "Is everything ok mom?"

Shelby looked at her and smiled halfheartedly. "Everything's great baby" She placed a kiss on top of Rachel's head and grabbed her fork and knife to start eating.

* * *

Will dropped his phone on the coffee table and poured himself a glass of scotch. He dropped down on the couch and stared at the ceiling. He kept replaying that last conversation with Shelby over and over, he also thought about their whole relationship trying to find what went wrong. She had said they weren't right, that they were just too different. What did that even mean?

He had known they were right for each other ever since that first night they made out on his couch. They way her body fit perfectly in his arms, the way her lips just glided off his, everything about her was as if it was made just for him.

The next time he saw her and when they actually started to go out he confirmed this. She was really cautious at first and he took it as a challenge to show her how amazing they were together. She made him truly happy and he hoped that he had that same effect on her. He thought he did but he was wrong.

He downed the glass and decided to drink from the bottle. He knew he must look pathetic lying on the couch moping around because of a woman. But Shelby Corcoran wasn't just any woman. She was funny, smart, beautiful and talented. She understood him and she never judged him.

He had been married for such a long time with Terri that he had forgotten how to be with other people. Being with Shelby was like being able to breathe again. He had never been able to truly be himself with Terri or Emma. Terri always put him down and he could never fulfill Emma's high expectations of him. Shelby saw him for what he was. She complimented him for the good things and knew how to point out the bad things without hurting his feelings. He knew she wasn't perfect either. But she was perfect for him.

He finished the bottle and stumbled over to his room. He opened his top drawer to get something to wear to bed and he saw one of his shirts Shelby wore when she stayed over. He picked it up, it still smelled like her. He realized he had crossed the pathetic line a long time ago so he put the shirt back in the drawer and went to bed.

Just before he fell asleep in his alcohol induced daze, he decided he wasn't going to let her run away that easily. He was going to fight for her.

* * *

They walked out of the restaurant and said goodbye to Liz.

"I'll see you guys next week. Call me if you need anything S."

Liz reached up and hugged Shelby. Just before letting go of her she whispered in her ear. "Stop running away from love sweetie."

She turned towards Rachel and Kate. "It was really nice to meet you both. Rachel, I will see you next week and I'll tell you all about your mom's exploits in the city. I'll show you some pictures of her with a horrible perm she had for a few months."

"Oh no, you won't. Come on girls, it's getting late."

They got back to the hotel and walked up to their room. Shelby was exhausted, physically and emotionally, and she threw herself in her bed the second she got into the room. Rachel sat next to her on the bed and smiled. "Tired?"

Shelby nodded and closed her eyes. They stayed in silence for a while until Rachel spoke.

"Mom, can I ask you something?"

Shelby opened her eyes and looked at her. She hoped she wouldn't ask about Will.

"Why did you go back to Ohio? You have a better voice than Liz and she stayed. She doesn't have the greatest roles but at least she's here."

Shelby leaned on her elbows. "I ran out of money and I ran out of patience. I hated having to be the understudy's understudy or girl number 3. I wanted to be a star. I wanted all or nothing. On a trip I made back to Ohio I saw an ad on the paper for the teaching job at Carmel. They pay was good and when I went for the interview the offered me the coaching job for the Glee club."

Rachel studied her, her voice was casual but she could hear a hint of regret. "Do you ever wish you stayed?"

"Sometimes, I love the city and I love being on stage but I like my job. Besides, if I had stayed I never would have met you and that beats any Broadway role I could have gotten."

Rachel smiled and Shelby sat up completely. She rested her hand on Rachel's cheek. "You look tired too, you should get some sleep. Tomorrow's going to be a long day."

Rachel stood up and walked out but she turned back at the door. "Did something happen with Mr. Schue? He sounded worried and you didn't look so good when you came back."

Shelby sighed. She had been afraid Rachel had noticed something and want to talk about it. She didn't want to lie to Rachel but she wasn't sure what the truth was anymore. "I sort of broke up with him."

"What? Why?" Rachel was really confused. They seemed so happy and in love. When he took them to the airport they could barely keep their hands off each other.

"I'm not sure. I think I love him."

That confused Rachel even more. "And that's a bad thing?"

"For me it is." Rachel walked back to the bed and sat next to her mom.

"I'm not sure I get it. If you love him, why aren't you with him? Does it have to be that complicated when you're older? I hope I don't have to be away from the people I love."

Shelby chuckled and hugged Rachel. "No, it's not that complicated. I just complicate myself too much."

"Maybe you should just tell him that you love him. It might make things easier if he knows."

Shelby smiled at how Rachel viewed everything with such simplicity and innocence. She nodded and pulled away from her. "I'll think about it." She kissed her goodnight and Rachel left.

* * *

Shelby woke up the next day feeling a bit better. She had decided to let the Will thing go for a while and think about it after they knew if they had won or not. She heard Rachel get up and knock on her door. She showed her face through the door and smiled at Shelby who was still lying down.

"You want to go have breakfast?"

Shelby nodded and motioned for her to get closer. "I need a hug."

Rachel got a huge smile and bent over to hug her. Shelby pulled her tight and Rachel fell on the bed next to her still trapped by her mom's arms. "Better?"

"Much, thanks."

"My dads told me to wish you good luck today when I called them yesterday."

Shelby smoothed down Rachel's hair for a while just enjoying being with her daughter again.

Rachel wiggled herself out of Shelby's grasp and stood up. "We have to hurry."

They had breakfast and then met the rest of Vocal Adrenaline on the lobby. She was getting ready to leave when the concierge called Shelby over.

"Ms. Corcoran, someone left a message for you." He picked up a piece of paper. "A Mr. Will Schuester called and asked to please call him back."

Shelby thanked him and hurried back to leave with the kids.

* * *

Will knew he shouldn't have called her, not so soon anyway, but he needed to let her know that he hadn't given up. He realized it was a long shot that she would actually call him back, they gave out the results for the competition today and she would probably be too busy celebrating.

He put on a track suit and went out for a run. He needed to clear his head, think about what he was going to do to get her back. Maybe he could send her some flowers. He kept running around, he was really sweating now.

He ran back to his apartment and opened the door. It felt empty now, knowing that Shelby might not come back. Nothing had actually changed in this place since he started going out with her, but there were subtle differences. A few new movies she brought over sat on top of the TV because she couldn't stand the ones he had, his college sweatshirt was now in his hall closet because she liked to throw it on as soon as she got to the house after a long day her coffee travel mug stood on the sink waiting to be washed after the last time she brought it home… Home, it did feel like home when she was here. It didn't really matter if they were at her place or his, he felt at home whenever he was with her.

He knew she felt the same. He had seen it in her eyes when she woke up in the morning next to him or when they cooked dinner together. He knew she wanted this too. He had to remind her what it was like to just be Shelby, his girlfriend, and not Shelby Corcoran, kick ass Glee coach who didn't need anyone.


	12. Gold Star

**AN: I was waiting for more reviews on the last chapter but since I waited and waited and got no more reviews I decided to post this tonight (well it's almost 3 am). I put the whole Shell situation on hold for this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 12: Gold Star

"We will now announce the 3 finalist on this year's National Show Choir Competition."

Rachel squeezed Shelby hand from the seat next to her. Shelby looked at her for a second and the focused back on the woman on the stage.

"Our first finalist is Perfect Harmony from Rosemead High in Los Angeles, California." There was a cheering and a group stood up and walked to the stage. Their coach was wearing a horrible lime green suit that made her look like a realtor.

"Our second finalist is Vocal Adrenaline from Carmel High in Lima, Ohio." They stood up and Shelby stopped when she noticed Rachel stayed on her seat. "What are you doing? Come up."

"But I'm not part of the team."

Shelby walked back and pulled her up. "This week you are. You helped a lot and I want you up there with me."

They got on the stage and Shelby shook the other coach's hand with contempt.

"Our third finalist is Saintly Octave from East Jefferson High in New Orleans, Louisiana."

A bunch of kids stood up and this time Shelby actually smiled when she shook their coach's hand.

"And now, the runner up is" There was a drum roll as the announcer took out the card. "Saintly Octave!" The group next to them exploded in cheers and they were handed their second place trophy. They stepped back so they could announce the winner.

"2010's…" Shelby took Rachel's hand. "…National Champion is…" Rachel felt the whole team pressing together behind them. "…Vocal Adrenaline!"

Shelby jumped up and scooped Rachel in the biggest hug ever. As soon as she let her go she felt Kate grab her shoulders and she bounced up and down screaming at the top of her lungs. Shelby received the huge trophy and handed it back to the kids who lifted it up. She congratulated the other teams with a huge smile on her face.

Rachel walked towards Jesse who was clapping with a sad smile on his face. "Congratulations, you got what you wanted, your four national titles."

"Sometimes getting what you want isn't that good."

Rachel bit her bottom lip. "Listen Jesse, I don't know what's going on but you should be really proud of yourself." She stood on her toes and kissed his cheek.

* * *

They went to the hotel to leave the trophy and reconvened at the lobby to decide where they wanted to go and celebrate. That last dinner was paid by the school so they could choose anything they wanted.

"I'll take suggestions and then we'll vote." Shelby took out a notepad and started writing down all the suggestions. They voted and the Burger Joint, Andrea's suggestion, was the one that won.

"Ok, so I'll meet you back here in an hour and then we'll walk to the restaurant."

Rachel was chatting happily with Kate. They went to Kate's room to get some stuff and then went up to Rachel's to get ready. They were finishing up their makeup and giggling happily when Shelby walked up to Rachel's room. She leaned on the door and watched with a smile as the girls puckered their lips to put on lipstick and admired each other's earrings. She loved that Rachel had found someone to hang out with while she was busy with all the competition stuff.

"Girls, we have to go."

Rachel skipped to her suitcase and then to Shelby holding something behind her back. "I got you a little something the other day for winning again."

"But we only found out we won today."

Rachel shrugged and gave her a shy smile. "I knew you were going to win. Open it!"

She handed her a small box with a pink ribbon. Shelby took the box and undid the ribbon carefully. Rachel was staring at her impatiently. She opened the box and took out a silver charm bracelet with a gold star, a silver ace of spades, a pair of comedy and tragedy masks and a small silver piano.

"Do you like it?"

Shelby closed her hand around the bracelet and tried really hard not to cry. "I love it."

Rachel jumped excitedly. "The ace of spades is for when we sang poker face and I think the rest are self explanatory."

Shelby hugged Rachel and put the bracelet on. "It's beautiful Rach, thanks."

* * *

They met with the whole team at the lobby and walked to the burger joint since it was only a few blocks away. Shelby had already reserved a large enough table for all of them so they went right in. Rachel went to the bathroom and when she got to the table there was only one sit left next to Andrea. She sat down ready for the hateful glare she was going to receive but Andrea smiled at her. Rachel guessed she was too happy about winning to continue with her stupid grudge.

Everyone placed their order, Rachel cringed when she heard Andrea order her burger raw, and chatted happily amongst themselves, everyone but Jesse. He sat in a corner of the table sulking.

Their orders arrived and the waiter placed Rachel's veggie burger in front of her, which didn't look different from all the other burgers except for the patty. The boy next to him started talking to her about something so she was too distracted to notice when Andrea switched their burgers. Jesse saw it and thought that maybe the waiter had messed up and Andrea was just giving Rachel her actual burger, but then Rachel raised the burger up to her mouth without looking and he saw the patty was blood red. Jesse threw himself across the table and swatted Rachel's burger from her hand just as she was about to take a bite.

Everyone in the table had gone quiet. Rachel sat there with her mouth still open. She didn't understand what just happened. Everyone was looking at Jesse but nothing was making a sound. Shelby finally stood up and walked to their side of the table.

"Jesse, what the hell is wrong with you?"

Jesse couldn't think of anything to explain himself so he just pointed to the burger now lying on the ground, the raw meat plastered on the floor disgustingly. Rachel jumped from her chair. "Is that beef?"

Shelby crouched down and squinted at the bloody piece of meat. After a short inspection she nodded.

Rachel turned away and put her head between her hands. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Shelby returned and rubbed Rachel's back. "I'm going to talk to the waiter about this. He should be more careful."

Jesse had gotten off the table on the other side and gave Andrea a deadly glare. "It wasn't the waiter. Andrea switched your burgers while you weren't looking."

Everyone turned to look at Andrea who was giving them her best innocent look. "Why would I do that?"

Kate stood up and walked to where Jesse was. "Because you have a stupid crush on Jesse and he still likes Rachel, so you hate her."

Shelby turned to Andrea who started to look scared and desperate. "Is that true?"

"Ms. Corcoran I…" She looked up at Shelby and saw her eyes pierce through her. She knew lying would be useless. "I'm really sorry, it was just a prank. It's not like she was going to die or anything."

"I'm a vegan! I can't eat meat!" Rachel walked out. Shelby motioned Kate and Jesse to follow her and they both nodded and walked away.

"Andrea, you're off the team and I'm sending you back to Lima first thing tomorrow morning. I'll call your parents when we get back to the hotel. Go pack your bags." She turned and pointed at a random boy. "Walk her back to the hotel and then come back. Make sure she goes into her room."

Andrea just sat there looking at her with her lower lip trembling slightly. "But Ms. Corcoran, I still have one year left in Carmel. You can't just kick me off the team!"

"Watch me." She turned around and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Someone get her out of my sight please, now!"

A couple of boys stood and escorted Andrea out who followed them with a defeated look. She passed Jesse and Kate who were trying to comfort Rachel and they gave her an icy glare.

She stopped in front of Rachel, tears in her eyes. "I'm really sorry. I didn't think it would be such a big deal."

Jesse moved between her and Rachel. "Go away Andrea." He gave her a look that could have rivaled with one of Shelby's.

She sobbed as she turned away and walked back to the hotel.

Jesse crouched down to where Rachel was squatting on the grown. She was pale and looked as if she was going to throw up. Kate was rubbing her back soothingly.

"Hey Rach, she's gone. Everything's ok now."

She was shaking. "I almost ate meat. I've never eaten meat." She looked at Jesse. "Thank you."

Jesse smiled at her. "You're welcome." He stroked her hair and Rachel started to regain her color.

"Is she ok?"

Jesse immediately jumped at the sound of Shelby's voice. Kate looked at Rachel, then up at Shelby and shrugged.

Shelby crouched and Kate stood up to give them some space.

"Hey baby, are you better now?"

Rachel nodded focusing on the pavement in front of her. Shelby ran a hand through Rachel's hair and cupped her cheek.

"Do you want something?"

Rachel shook her head. "Can I just go back to the room?"

Shelby nodded. "Sure baby. I have to stay with the kids but Kate and Jesse can walk you back." She looked at them and they both nodded. "I'll try to hurry up, ok?"

Rachel nodded and stood up. Kate took her hand and they started to slowly walk down the street. Shelby turned to Jesse. "I'll get your burgers to go and I'll take them back for you."

Jesse nodded and saw Shelby hesitate a bit. Finally, Shelby took a step towards him and hugged him. "Thank you."

Jesse hugged her back and almost cried. "Anyone would have done it."

Shelby let him go and shook her head. "You're a great kid Jesse. I'm really proud of you."

Jesse hugged her again and Shelby chuckled. "Go, you're supposed to take care of Kate and Rachel. They're already on the corner."

Jesse pulled away and gave her one last smile before he ran to catch up with Rachel and Kate.

Everyone stopped talking the moment Shelby walked back in. They were all worried she might take her anger out on them now that Andrea was gone. She looked at them and took her seat. "This is supposed to be a celebration people, not a funeral."

**

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AN: I know the prank might seem kind of lame but if you're a vegetarian, or vegan, it really is a big deal to eat meat without knowing. I hoped you liked it and please review :)**


	13. Closer

**AN: Hey! Sorry it took me longer than usual, I was kind of busy this weekend. I hope you enjoy this and I'll try to have the next one soon :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own Glee.  
**

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Chapter 13: Closer

Rachel, Kate and Jesse entered the suite. Rachel dropped down on the couch and Jesse sat next to her. Kate stayed by the door.

"Do you mind if I stay here tonight? I don't want to sleep in the same room as Andrea, she probably hates me and I wouldn't want to wake up with her hands around my neck."

Rachel smiled at her and nodded. Kate walked to the door. "I'm going to go get some stuff then."

Jesse looked at Rachel. She had regained her color on the walk back and now looked a lot better. "Do you want to order something for dinner? You didn't eat anything."

"Maybe later, I still feel a little nauseous. Do you want something? You didn't get to eat either."

"No, Ms. Corcoran is bringing us our burgers when she comes back."

Rachel looked down. "Ok."

"Rachel I just want to apologize. I was a real jerk and I'm really sorry. I wanted to hurt you like you hurt me."

Rachel put her hand on top of his. "It's ok Jesse. You pretty much redeemed yourself today. Are you better now? You've been pretty down." She gave him a shy smile and he scooted closer to her, grabbing her hand. He loved that she still worried about him after what had just happened to her.

"I am, thanks."

She bent down to look at his face. "Are you going to tell me what happened?"

Jesse sighed. He guessed he could tell her now that everything was right again. "I just really admire your mom. She's like the most amazing person ever. She's always helped me through stuff with my parents and school, and she's always supported me. She's the reason I got my scholarship. I just owe her so much and when this whole thing with you happened I really disappointed her."

Jesse saw Rachel's face turn sad. "It's not your fault. I just felt like the biggest failure ever. Her approval means everything to me."

"I know how you feel. Before I met her, I always feared I might not be good enough for her. That she would be disappointed when she met me and wouldn't want to get to know me. Now that I met her and I've seen how amazing she is, I fear she might rally be disappointed in me and regret seeking me out."

Jesse turned towards Rachel and pulled her hair behind her ear and rested his hand on her shoulder. "You could never disappoint her. You're amazing too."

Rachel smiled and they both started to lean forward. Jesse moved his hand to Rachel's neck. Their lips were about to touch when they heard a knock on the door and they both jumped back. Rachel got up and went to open the door and Jesse rested his head in his hands.

She was flushed when she opened the door and Kate gave her a weird look. She saw Jesse and then back to Rachel. "I'm sorry; do you guys want me to come back later?"

"No, it's fine. What do you mean? We were just talking." Rachel said it really fast and Kate could see she was nervous. She arched an eyebrow towards her. "I think they're back anyway, I saw some guys in the hall when I was leaving my room."

Jesse stood up and smoothed his hand on his jeans. "I should go. I guess I'll see you later then." He looked at Rachel with a hopeful look and walked out. He almost crashed into Shelby in his hurry to get out.

"Jesse! I got you your food."

He grabbed the paper bag she was offering and walked away. "Thanks Ms. Corcoran."

Shelby entered the room. "What's his deal?"

Kate shrugged and took the bag Shelby handed her. "Thanks Ms. Corcoran."

Rachel was standing with her back to them, her arms crossed over her chest. She had almost kissed Jesse. She wasn't sure that was a good thing. They've been down that road before and the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. They both clearly still had feelings for each other but Rachel didn't think it was wise to do something about them. She had just broken up with Finn a week ago precisely because he was afraid she'd do something like this.

She was snapped out of her musings by Shelby's hand on her shoulder.

"How are you doing baby?"

Rachel turned to face Shelby. "I'm better now, thanks." She gave her a small smile and Shelby eyed her suspiciously. Something was still going on with her.

"You have to eat something. Do you want me to order you a salad?"

Rachel nodded and Shelby went to the phone to order the salad. Kate was on the couch eating her burger so Rachel went into her room since she couldn't bare the sight of meat right now. She changed for bed, braided her hair and went back out. Kate had finished eating and Shelby was now on the couch with her watching something on TV.

Shelby turned around when she saw Rachel come in. She patted the cushion next to her and Rachel sat down. Shelby placed her arm around her and pulled her closer. Rachel settled on the crook of her arm and sighed. She was comforted to know that, no matter how awful her day was, she could now go to her mom and she would hug her and everything wouldn't be so bad anymore.

They ordered "Nine" on pay per view since Shelby hadn't seen it. Shelby went to bed just after Kate Hudson's song saying that she was too tired and that the movie wasn't helping her stay awake. She kissed Rachel's head and ruffled Kate's hair before walking to her room. Kate stopped breathing and had the goofiest look on her face.

Rachel burst out laughing. "Oh my god! You should see your face right now."

Kate snapped out of it and gave Rachel a little shove. "Shut up!"

* * *

Shelby rushed out of the elevator. Andrea was already waiting for her with her suitcase. She asked for a cab at the front desk and motioned Andrea to follow her out. She didn't know how she was going to stand the cab ride to the airport with that girl. The cab rider put Andrea's case in the trunk and they got in.

Andrea kept fidgeting and looked at Shelby from time to time. Shelby kept her eyes fixed on the window, looking at the passing traffic and buildings. The ride was slow and about halfway through it Andrea couldn't take the silence anymore. "Ms. Corcoran?"

Shelby turned to look at the girl who shrank at her gaze. She knew that angry look. She had been one of the people who received it the most in her three years in Vocal Adrenaline, but she still felt like crawling under a rock every time she saw it.

"I… well… I just wanted to apologize for what I did. I know it was childish and wrong and I'm really, really sorry for acting that way."

Shelby turned back to look at the window. "I'm not the one you should apologize to."

Andrea looked out the window and swallowed the lump on her throat. "I told Rachel I was sorry yesterday." Her voice broke a bit and she took a deep breath before continuing. "I still owe you an apology. It was disrespectful."

After a few seconds Shelby spoke without looking away from the window. "Apology accepted. You're still not coming back to the team."

Andrea nodded. "I know."

* * *

Rachel stretched and got up, careful not to wake Kate up but she tripped over with the corner of the bed and almost dropped a lamp so Kate woke up anyway. Rachel gave her a sheepish look.

"Good morning." She grinned at her trying to get her to lose the grumpy you-just-woke-me-up look.

Kate glared at her for a bit but was too tired to keep doing it. "Good morning."

"I'm going to take a shower on my mom's room so you can use this one."

Kate pressed her face to the pillow and grumbled. She gave Rachel a muffled thanks and Rachel gathered her things to take to her mom's room. As she was crossing she heard a knock on the door. She opened the door and saw a beautiful flower bouquet on the other side. One of the bell boys was carrying it and Rachel stepped back to let him in. "This arrived for Ms. Shelby Corcoran."

It was a huge bouquet of red and yellow lilies. The bell boy left them on the table and left. Kate walked out still looking really sleepy but she opened her eyes widely when she saw the size of the bouquet. "Wow! Who's that for?"

Rachel circled around the table looking at it. "For my mom, they didn't say who sent them though. There's a card, I guess it says it there." She shrugged. "We should get ready. She'll read it when she gets back." Kate nodded and they both walked back to their respective rooms.

* * *

Shelby opened the door to the suite and saw the flowers. Her heart started to race and her throat went dry. Will had given her red and yellow lilies on their first date. She walked towards them and took envelope that was resting on top. She walked to her room and sat on the bed.

Rachel startled her when she came out of the bathroom combing out her wet hair. "Hi mom, did you see the flowers? Who sent them?"

"Will." Shelby kept looking at the tiny white card chewing her bottom lip nervously. _This is ridiculous, it's just a card. _She ripped open the tiny envelope and took out the folded piece of white cardboard. She unfolded it and read what it said out loud.

"Right from the start  
I gave you my heart."

Rachel sat on the other side of the bed. "Isn't that a verse from 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'?"

Shelby folded the card back and put it in the envelope. "Yes it is." They had sung 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' on their first date when he took her to that horrible Karaoke bar. She got up and placed the card back with the flowers.

"Since it's Kate's last day here I thought you guys might want to do something on your own. Go shopping or something." She handed her some money. "I'm getting lunch with Liz and we can do something in the afternoon if you want."

Shelby squinted at Rachel who was still sitting on her bed combing her hair. "Did you use my shampoo?"

"Yes, sorry. I used your bathroom so that Kate could take a shower in mine." She gave her an innocent smile.

"It's fine. Call me when you're done and I'll meet you guys back here." She picked up her purse and walked out of the room. Rachel followed her. "Mom?"

Shelby turned, her hand already on the doorknob. Rachel traced a pattern with her foot on the carpet nervously. She didn't know if she was way out of line by asking this. "Are you going to call Mr. Schue?"

"I don't know, Rach, maybe." Shelby opened the door and walked out of the room.

Rachel sighed. She wasn't the only one struggling with her feelings. She just wished she could do something to help.

**

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AN: I made an interesting discovery the other day. I get more reviews if I remind you to do it at the end of the chapter :) so… review?**


	14. Park & Tunnel

**AN: I promised myself I wouldn't go to bed until I finished this because I've been kinda lazy. I just haven't been feeling it lately, you know? I'm listening to "See What I Wanna See" to cheer me up a bit. Hope you like it. Also, I apologize in advance to Hollie and Starophie, you're really not gonna like a part of this chap.**

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Chapter 14: Park & Tunnel

Shelby found the number she was looking for. Liz lived in an old building in Brooklyn. Her loft was too big for her but it wasn't expensive and she was very particular when it came to roommates. She had agreed to live with Shelby because she really needed it back then, but she hated having to bring a stranger into her house. She'd lived with her ex for a couple of years but he got a job in Chicago and she didn't want to leave New York so she stayed and he left.

Liz buzzed her in and she went up to the third floor. Liz opened the door with a huge smile. "Hey girlfriend, you ready to kick it?"

Shelby arched an eyebrow. "Kick what?"

Liz rolled her eyes and let her in. "So you're Show Choir Competition thingy national champion again, huh?"

Shelby sat on a couch and nodded distractedly. A tear made its way down her cheek and she wiped it away furiously. Liz crouched down in front of her. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She sniffed and looked away. "Will sent me flowers, red and yellow lilies like the ones he gave me on our first date."

"Oh he's so cute."

Shelby chuckled dejectedly and new tears started flowing from her eyes. Liz reached up and wiped one away. "Why are you crying? Flowers are good, right?"

"Yeah, flowers are good and he's good, too good. God, I don't know what to do. He put in this card with the flowers with a verse from 'Don't go Breaking my Heart'. On our first date he took me to a karaoke bar and we did that song." She pressed her face to her hands and started sobbing. "He's amazing. What am I doing?"

Liz sat down next to her and rubbed her back. "Maybe you should call him."

Shelby looked at her. "How can I call him after I broke up with him over the phone? I told him we would never work. I can't just take that back."

Liz sighed. "He wouldn't have sent you the flowers if he didn't want to talk to you. Give him a chance. Just call to thank him for the flowers and see how that goes. You don't have to say anything about what you said or what's going to happen."

She walked away and came back with the phone. She handed it to Shelby who stared at it for a while before she punched in Will's number. She bit her right thumbnail and waited for him to answer. Right when she was about to hang up he picked up.

"Hello." He sounded out of breath. She held the phone not breathing for a second. "Hello? Who is this?"

Liz elbowed her. "Hi Will, it's me."

Will was the one who stopped breathing now. He didn't know what to expect after he had sent the flowers, but he wasn't ready for her call. He wanted to tell her so many things but didn't know where to begin.

Shelby spoke since he didn't say anything. "I got your flowers, they're beautiful."

He smiled. "I'm glad you liked them. I didn't know if you'd like me to send them after what you said the other day."

Shelby didn't want to talk about this. If there was a way to just undo what she said and go back to where they were before, she would take it. Everything felt awkward now. "No, it's ok. I really liked them, the card too. It reminded me of our first date and what a great time I had with you."

"That was the point." He took a deep breath. "Listen, Shelby, can we talk? I really don't want to leave things the way we did." He held his breath waiting for her answer.

Shelby stood up and walked to Liz's balcony. She needed some air and she couldn't talk with Liz staring at her. "I don't want to leave things like that either."

He smiled widely. He knew she hadn't meat what she said the other day. They could work things out.

"But right now is not the right time to discuss it. Can I call you when I get back to the hotel?"

Will deflated a bit but he guessed that it was better than nothing. "Sure, whenever you want."

Shelby smiled as she leaned on the railing. "So I'll call you later then. Bye."

Will heard the line go dead and he took a deep breath before he put the phone down. He had almost missed Shelby's call. He had just returned from running to stop thinking about what Shelby thought about the flowers and he was about to jump in the shower. He had already taken off his sweaty T-shirt when he heard the phone. He thought of letting the machine answer it but something made him go pick up. He was glad he did.

He walked back to the bathroom. He was afraid, terrified really, that Shelby might not call him back. She wasn't the type of person who would lie but maybe she intended to call him when she said it but she would regret it later and not call. Maybe she wanted to talk but she still wanted to break up with him. He groaned and stepped into the shower. This was going to be another long day.

* * *

Rachel and Kate walked out of a store. They were exhausted and the amount of bags and boxes they were carrying was not helping. They had started out early, enthusiastically trying on everything they liked. Modeling out different outfits for each other and laughing hysterically at some of their choices. It was a little past noon and they hadn't had anything to eat yet so they decided to take their stuff to the hotel and have lunch before continuing with their shopping day.

They were walking out of the hotel to find somewhere to eat when Rachel saw Jesse in the lobby. She waved at him and he walked over with a mischievous smile. He was with Adam, another boy from Vocal Adrenaline. Rachel thought he was a sophomore too, but she wasn't sure.

Rachel suddenly felt very nervous which was completely ridiculous since, first of all, she'd already dated Jesse, and second, nothing was going to happen between them. She had already thought about it and talked it over with Kate and she decided that Jesse and her were just not meant to be. Besides, Kate was there, he wouldn't try anything with Kate there. "We're going to go get some lunch, do you want to come?"

"Sure. Where are we going?"

Rachel turned to Kate who just shrugged. "We don't know yet. We're open to suggestions."

Jesse smiled and took Rachel's hand. "Come."

They walked out of the hotel, Rachel and Jesse on the front and Adam and Kate on the back. A block away from the hotel Jesse turned back to look at Kate and Adam and leaned in to whisper on Rachel's ear. "I think Adam likes Kate."

Rachel turned to look at them and saw Adam walking very close to Kate. He said something, Kate laughed and he smiled. They didn't seem to notice Jesse and Rachel looking at them. Rachel smiled. "Oh yeah, they're kind of cute."

Jesse thought it would be a good idea, since it was their last day, to enjoy Central Park. So they bought some sandwiches and sat down on the grass to eat. They finished their food and Kate stood up. "I'm going to go get some ice cream, do you guys want to come?"

Adam stood up. "I'll go."

Rachel smiled at the stunned look Kate got for a second. "You guys go ahead. We'll meet you back at the hotel in a while." Kate mouthed thanks to Rachel before she turned around and walked away. Adam took her hand a few steps away and Rachel chuckled. "They really are cute."

Jesse pouted and rested his head on Rachel's lap. "Cuter than us?"

Rachel laughed. "Well, I never thought of us as cute."

Jesse frowned and Rachel traced his jaw line with her index finger. His face relaxed and he closed his eyes. Rachel brushed her fingers along his lips and he kissed them. She got a tingling sensation that spread through her arm. She removed her hand and he opened his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He squinted up at her and she turned away from him. He sat up and turned her by the chin to look at him. "Hey, what happened?"

She sighed dramatically. "What are we doing, Jesse?"

He gave her a confused look. "We're hanging out? Eating? Enjoying the weather? Never waste a hot afternoon, right?"

Rachel smiled for a second and looked down. She started plucking the grass near her foot. "I mean, why are you being all, you know, nice and romantic? Why did we almost kiss last night?"

"Because we like each other." Jesse pulled a strand of Rachel hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek.

She shook her head and pulled away from him. "What do you want?"

"What do I want?" He frowned not really understanding what she meant.

"Yeah, do you want to get back together?"

He smiled. "Of course I do, I mean, if you want to. Do you want to get back together?"

She sighed. Part of her did want to get back with him. "I don't know. We already tried it and it was a disaster. Besides, you're going away for college in the fall. I don't think long distance is going to work either."

Jesse looked down and ran his hands through the grass next to him. He nodded. "You're right, it's not fair of me to ask you to get back together and leave. I just have to say that I do believe we could be amazing together. Maybe if we meet again later in life we can try again."

Rachel smiled and tipped his chin up. "I'd like that, maybe, we'll see." She leaned over and kissed him. When they parted she pressed her forehead to his. "We should go back to the hotel, see if Kate and Adam are back.

Jesse nodded and stood up, offering his hand to help Rachel up. She took it and they walked back to the hotel without letting go of each other's hands.

* * *

Shelby walked back in from the balcony. Liz was still sitting on her couch and looked at her expectantly. She sat on a chair across from Liz without saying anything. Liz just looked at her until she lost her patience and started waving her arms around. "So? What happened? What did he say?"

"I thanked him about the flowers and the card. He wanted to talk, he said he didn't want to leave things the way we did the other day." Shelby bit her bottom lip and wrung her hands on her lap.

Liz gave her a second but she didn't say anything else. "And then?"

"I told him I didn't want that either but that it wasn't a good time and that I'd call him when I got to the hotel."

"What? Why?" Liz stood up and started pacing around her living room. "I thought you were going to give him a chance. Shelby I can't let you do this to yourself. You love the man!"

"I know I love him, I just freaked, ok?" Shelby didn't realize what she said until the words were out of her mouth. She placed her hand on top of her mouth as if trying to push the words back in. "I just said I loved him."

Liz stopped pacing and turned to her. She was really freaking out now so she crouched down next to her. "Sweetie, I need you to take a deep breath for me please."

Shelby took a deep breath. She felt weird. She was terrified but she was also sort of happy. "I love him. I love Will Schuester." She took another deep breath and then started laughing uncontrollably.

"Oh lord, she finally lost it. I knew this was going to happen eventually." Liz stood up and went to the kitchen for a glass of water. When she came back Shelby was still laughing, tears were rolling down her cheeks and her face was red.

"Shelby, you're scaring me. I need you to calm down." She waited for a bit for her to calm down but when she saw that wasn't happening she splashed the whole glass of water on her face.

Shelby stopped laughing and gave her an outraged look. "What the hell was that for?"

"You needed to stop laughing and it was the only thing I could think of to do it. Now are you going to tell me what is wrong with you?" She handed Shelby a towel she had also brought with her to dry herself.

"I just find it really funny that I love him, that's all."

Liz arched an eyebrow. "How is that funny?"

"It's just funny. I fell in love with a recently divorced man who also happens to be my daughter's teacher and a rival Glee club coach. Me, Shelby Corcoran; I haven't fallen in love with anyone since… well, it's been a while, and I chose to fall for the most inappropriate person I could think of."

"It's not that funny." Shelby threw her a look and Liz smiled at her. "So, now that you've accepted you love him, what are you going to do about it?"

Shelby sank down on the couch. "I have no idea."

**

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AN: I wanted to thank you guys because I passed 200 reviews a couple of chapters ago and I didn't really notice it until Hollie pointed it out :) So, maybe I can get to 300 this chapter? Hahaha that would mean I would need 69 reviews for this one (yeah, right). Maybe just to 250? Let me know what you think if you want, no pressure, really :P**


	15. Those Three Words

**AN: It's almost 4 am but since you did get me to over 350 reviews I thought I'd work extra hard and get this in. I'm glad you spotted my Enchanted reference :) I sometimes reference the most random things, like in this chapter. I hope you like it.**

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Chapter 15: Those Three Words

Lunch was followed by a few glasses of wine and a few hours of remembering the good old days. Liz took out an old album where she kept a bunch of photos and playbills from when they were younger. There were some good pictures and some not so good.

"Oh my god, I have to show this to Rachel. She's going to love your crazy cat woman costume. Why were you wearing that?"

"It was New Year. You're wearing that thing. I don't even know what that is." Shelby pointed to a round hat Liz was wearing on her head.

"It's supposed to be a pie, I think. I don't know where I got it. You had an awesome body for someone who had just given birth."

Shelby smiled. This had been taken almost a year after Rachel was born. "I did look hot back then, didn't I?"

"Aw sweetie, you're still hot. You're just more mature."

Shelby scowled. "Are you calling me old? Because we're the same age."

"I'm slightly younger." Liz got up to get a new bottle of wine.

"Less than a year, it doesn't count." She shouted so she could be heard from the kitchen.

Liz came back with the bottle already uncorked and refilled her glass. "It counts. Besides, having a teenage daughter doesn't really help your case."

"Hey! I don't look like the mother of a 16 year old girl."

Liz shrugged. "It does make you look happier though. Or maybe it's the fact that you're in love." She said it teasingly.

"Shut up!" She pouted and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Liz laughed. "Do you want more wine?"

Shelby looked at her watch. "No, I should go. I told Rachel we'd do something." She got up and felt so dizzy she almost fell.

"Whoa, you ok? Maybe you had a little too much to drink there, Shelby." Liz grabbed her arm.

"No, I'm ok. I'm just a little tipsy. I'll be fine." She walked to the door and hugged Liz goodbye.

"Have you decided what you're going to do about Will?"

Shelby shook her head and immediately regretted it, the whole room started spinning. She pressed her fingers to the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and walked out.

"Call me when you get to the hotel so I now you're not dead in a ditch somewhere!"

* * *

Rachel and Jesse reached the hotel and found Kate and Adam in the lobby. "Hey guys, how was your ice cream?"

Kate gave Rachel a confused look. "Oh yeah, ice cream. We couldn't find any."

"But there's a…" Rachel hit Jesse so he stopped talking.

Adam looked at his watch. "We should go. We still have to pack and our room is a mess." He leaned and put his hand on Kate's waist. "I'll see you later."

Kate watched him walk away and Rachel looked at her face with amusement. When the elevator doors closed after Adam, Kate noticed Rachel staring. "What?"

Rachel smiled. "Nothing."

They heard a clatter behind them and turned to find Shelby leaning on one of the bell boys who was trying to steady a vase. Rachel hurried to her and thanked the bell boy.

"Mom, are you drunk?" Kate grabbed Shelby from the other side and they walked her to the elevator.

"No, I'm just a bit tipsy. I had some wine over at Liz's and it went straight to my head." She leaned on the elevator wall with her eyes closed.

"You're not going to throw up, are you? Because I don't think the elevator is the greatest place to do it." Kate scrunched up her nose and shook her head vehemently.

"I'm not throwing up, don't worry girls." The elevator reached their floor and they helped her to the room. They sat her on the floor while Rachel rummaged in her purse for her key.

Shelby bent her legs and rested her head between her knees. Rachel took the key out triumphantly and opened the door. They took Shelby and sat her on the couch.

"Are you sure you don't want to throw up? I can bring you a trash can just in case." Kate went to find a trash can to the bathroom.

"I'm not drunk, Rach, really. Stop worrying. Can you call Liz and tell her I got here ok?" She handed Rachel her cell and Kate returned with a trash can and placed it next to the couch, near enough to hand it to her if it was needed.

Kate pulled Rachel to the side. "I should go pack too. Are you going to be ok with her like this?"

Rachel nodded. "I don't think she's that drunk."

"Ok, call me if you need anything."

Rachel walked her out and returned to find Shelby sitting on the ground with her back leaning on the couch. "What are you doing down there?"

"The couch was moving so I had to get off." Rachel chuckled and sat next to her. She rested her head on her shoulder and Shelby kissed her hair.

"I love you baby. I really, really do. You know, I was looking at some pictures today with Liz and all I could think of was how stupid I was for being here and not being with you. I'm sorry." She kissed Rachel hair again and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

"It's ok, mom. I get it." Rachel snuggled closer to her. "I'm glad you're with me now."

"Me too." They sat silently for a while until Rachel felt Shelby shrugging her off.

She sat straight and grabbed Rachel's shoulders. "You know what we should do? We should go to the Empire State Building."

"Now?"

"Yes now. You know, every time I wondered what you were doing I'd go up there and look over the city. It was beautiful. And after a while I'd just know you were ok."

Rachel choked up and swallowed the lump in her throat. Shelby didn't notice and she pushed her. "What are you waiting for, let's go!"

Rachel stood up. "Can you get up?"

Shelby got up slowly and found she was less dizzy. "I'm better now."

* * *

They reached the observation deck and looked down at the city. It really was beautiful. Rachel stared at all the lights mesmerized. Shelby hugged Rachel from behind and rested her chin on her shoulder.

"I'd come here every year on your birthday."

Rachel started to tear up again. "Really?"

Shelby nodded. "Every year I got up and walked down to this shop near my place and I would look at all the birthday cards. I knew I couldn't send you one because of the contract but I still bought some a few times. I'd come here and stand at this exact spot for hours thinking about what presents you got or what kind of cake you were having." She sniffed and wiped a tear. "I knew I was torturing myself but I couldn't stop thinking about you. That's also why I went back to Lima. If I couldn't talk to you I could at least be near you, even if I was too scared to look for you."

Rachel couldn't hold back her tears anymore and started sobbing loudly.

"Baby, what's wrong. Don't cry, we're good now and you had a great childhood with your dads. They gave you more than I could have ever hoped to give you." She turned her around and held her.

"I'm really sorry, mom." She sniffed and rubbed her face on Shelby's sleeve taking short shallow breaths.

"Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything."

Rachel nodded and started sobbing again. "I never pushed my dads to tell me about you. I didn't want to offend them. I should have asked to meet you sooner, I just though you didn't want to meet me so I didn't bother."

Shelby ran a soothing hand through her hair. "It's not your fault, Rach. We're together now, that's what matters. Stop crying, please."

She hugged her tighter and Rachel started to calm down. After a while she would just sniff and shake a bit. When Shelby saw her sufficiently recuperated she released her hold on her a bit. "Do you want to go back now?"

"Can we stay up here a bit longer?"

Shelby kissed her forehead and turned her towards the city. "Sure, baby. Anything you want."

They stayed there a while longer and then took a cab back to the hotel. Rachel had calmed down and returned to her bubbly self blabbering on about everything she bought with Kate that day. They had dinner on the hotel restaurant and went up to the room.

Rachel was already on her bed when Shelby went to check on her. "Can you tuck me in?"

It sounded so childish, but after what happened today Rachel really needed her mom to tuck her in and give her a kiss goodnight. Shelby walked to the side of the bed and pulled the covers up. She sat next to Rachel and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Goodnight sweetie. I love you."

"I love you too, mom." Rachel threw her arms around her.

Shelby walked back to her room. She had to admit that going up to the Empire State Building hadn't been the best idea. On her defense, she had been a little drunk. Still, she never intended for Rachel to feel bad. She flopped down on her bed and looked at her cell on the nightstand.

She had told Will she'd call him when she got to the hotel. She was in the hotel now so the next logical step was to call him. She took the phone and stared at it. She still didn't know what she was going to tell him. She groaned. This whole love thing was really messing her up. She dialed Will's number and waited. He picked up at the second ring. "Hey."

"Hi." Shelby was staring at the ceiling as though it would tell her what to say next.

Will had been waiting by the phone all day. He got up a few times for food and to the bathroom but he had barely moved. "I thought you weren't going to call."

"Yeah, I'm sorry it took me so long. I was out with Rachel."

They didn't say anything for a while, both unsure where to begin. Will opened his mouth to say something when Shelby spoke. "I love you."

Will closed his mouth and then opened it again. "Did you just say that you loved me?"

_Crap, crap, crap, what was that? Why would I just say it like that?_

"Shelby?" Will was totally freaking out too. If she did say what he thought she said then, what did it mean? Was she un-breaking up with him? "Did you say you love me?"

"God, William, yes I did! I love you, are you happy?"

"Very." Will chuckled. It was typical Shelby to get mad at him as she was telling him she loved him. "So, what now?"

"What do you mean?" She was hoping he would tell her what now. She did her part; she told him she loved him. Now it was his turn to figure out everything else.

"Well, you sort of broke up with me a couple of days ago so, what do you want to do now? Do you want to give us another shot?"

"Do you want that?" She knew it was mean to throw his question back at him but she needed to know.

Will heard the hesitation in her voice. How could she ever doubt that? "Of course I do. Shelby, I love you too. I want to be with you. I didn't even understand why you pushed me away."

"Ok so, we'll give it another chance." Shelby smiled. She was worried that this might not turn out this way, that she might screw up and say something wrong.

"Good." Will felt a weight lifted from his chest. He really thought he had lost her. "So you love me?"

"Don't gloat, Will." She laughed at his teasing. "But I really do."

He missed her laugh. Her smile was the most amazing thing ever. She could light up a room with that smile. He couldn't believe he was lucky enough for her to love him. "Can you say it again just one more time?"

She sighed contentedly. "I love you."

**

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AN: I thought we could do a little exercise this chapter. If you feel like it, tell me your favorite part of the chapter and your least favorite part. You can also play "Spot the Crazy Reference", there are two on this chapter. If you don't want to just review as you usually do. And if you don't want to review either then don't :P**


	16. Plane

**AN: I'm sorry it took me all weekend to update but real life attacked me. I wrote a one shot a few days ago so check it out if you feel like it. This chapter is kind of weird. I was doing the 30 day Idina meme thing on tumblr and today was "Something you'd love to tell Idina" and I got a little fangirly for a while there and it might have seeped into this chapter. So if it's too "Shelby is the best" blame it on the meme. I hope you like it.**

* * *

Chapter 16: Plane

"Rachel!" Shelby was on Rachel's bed shaking her gently. "Rach, wake up!"

Rachel groaned and pressed her face to the pillow.

"Rachel, it's late and we have to get to the airport. Wake up!" She shook her a bit more and sighed exasperated when she didn't move.

"Fine, you can stay here."She got off the bed. "I also wanted to tell you I got back together with Will."

Rachel lifted her head from the pillow and grabbed Shelby's wrist before she walked away. "What? When? How?"

Shelby sat down on the bed. "Yesterday, after you went to bed I called him."

Rachel squinted up at her sleepily. "And what, you got back together just like that?"

"Well, sort of." Shelby brushed Rachel's hair away from her forehead. "I told him I loved him and we decided to try again." She said it quickly since it was still hard to admit to other people that she loved him, even if it was to Rachel.

Rachel smiled. "You told him you loved him?" Shelby bit her lower lip and nodded.

"That's great! I'm really happy for you, mom." She sat up and hugged her. "So, am I going to have to hang out with you and Mr. Schue in a less formal setting now?"

"If you want to, I mean, if it's weird for you, you don't have to. I would like it if we could do stuff together every once in a while, like go to a movie or to dinner or something."

"We can do that. I like movies and food and stuff." She smiled.

Shelby hugged her. "Thanks, baby." She let her go and stood up. "You have to hurry if you want to come with me to the airport."

* * *

The lobby was a mess with Vocal Adrenaline kids and their suitcases all over, but they all moved like the red sea did for Moses when Shelby walked among them. Rachel had realized this week that it wasn't just fear, they really respected her, venerated her like some kind of deity. Being friends with Kate confirmed this. Even when she had spent some time with her, not as her coach but as her friend's mom, Kate still looked at her like she could walk on water.

Rachel went over to where Kate was standing, jumping over a few bags since she didn't have that red sea effect. They started to exit the hotel to load the bus and Adam arrived to help Kate with her stuff. Rachel pulled her aside. "So what's up with you guys?"

"I don't know yet. He's nice and I like him but we're just having fun for now. Nothing has really happened." Kate shrugged and they got in the bus.

Kate and Rachel took a seat together with Jesse and Adam on the seats in front of them. Jesse turned around and kneeled on the seat. "So, Rachel, are you going to miss me?"

Rachel stuck her tongue out at him. "I think I'm going to be having too much fun here to actually miss you." Jesse smirked and sat back down.

They arrived at JFK and unloaded the bus. It took some time to check every bag and Shelby checked everyone as they went to the metal detectors, which was as far as she could go with them.

Kate hugged Rachel goodbye. "Call me when you get back."

"I will, I just hope you're not going to stop liking me when we're in different teams next semester."

Kate chuckled. "Don't worry." She walked to the line of people getting counted by Shelby.

Shelby surprised Kate by hugging her when she got to her. "Thanks for keeping Rachel company, Kate. I really appreciate it." She let go and pushed her so she could continue with her head count.

Adam caught up to Kate. "Wow, she hugged you. She doesn't just hug people."

Kate nodded still mulling over what had happened. She smiled, Shelby Corcoran hugged her.

Shelby walked up to Rachel and threw her arm around her shoulder as they watched the others walk past the security check. "It's just the two of us now. I hope you don't get too bored with no one else to hang out with other than your mom."

Rachel wrapped an arm around Shelby's waist. "Don't worry, you're pretty cool for a mom. Not that I have many experiences with moms but you're cool."

* * *

Rachel dropped down on the couch exhausted. They had been at every box office buying tickets. She knew they could have bought the tickets in one place instead of going around town but Shelby liked buying them in the box office.

In the next two weeks they were going to go to Fela!, La Cage Aux Folles, A Little Night Music, Promises, Promises, Wicked, Jersey Boys and Million Dollar Quartet. Shelby reluctantly agreed to also take Rachel to American Idiot and Rock of Ages. She felt better about it when she saw how happy it made Rachel. She kept jumping around every time they got a new pair of tickets and Shelby felt obligated to remind her that this was not merely recreational, this was also helpful for her future career.

Shelby threw her shoes to a corner and flopped down next to Rachel. Rachel laid her head on Shelby's lap and Shelby absentmindedly played with Rachel's hair.

"This is going to be great! You're really going to like American Idiot, mom. It was nominated for Best Musical in this year's Tony's. And Rock of Ages is great too; they sing 'Don't Stop Believing'."

Shelby had her head thrown back and her eyes closed. "That sounds great honey."

Rachel looked at her and chuckled. "Are you even listening to me?"

Shelby opened her eyes and looked down smiling. "I am listening to you, I'm just really tired. It's been an intense week."

"Tell me about it." Rachel closed her eyes and started to doze off on Shelby's lap, lulled by her caress.

Shelby nudged her shoulder gently. "Honey, you should go to bed."

Rachel snuggled closer to Shelby. "I'm comfortable here."

"But you're falling asleep. Come on, I'll tuck you in again."

Rachel laughed. She did like being tuck by her mom even if she was too old for it and she knew Shelby enjoyed it too. It was as if they were making up for something they didn't get a chance to do. She got up and walked to her room.

"I'm going to change and then I'll go in to tuck you."

Shelby knocked on her door as she was getting in bed. She let her in and lied down enthusiastically.

Shelby chuckled. "You don't have to look so eager just to make me happy. I don't have to tuck you in if you don't want to." She pulled the covers up to Rachel's chin.

"I'm not doing it for you. I like it, just don't tell anyone."

Shelby kissed her hair softly. "Don't worry, I won't."

Rachel yawned so Shelby started to walk out. "Mom?"

Shelby turned around. Rachel was already half asleep, her eyes half closed. "Yes baby?"

"You're really going to like American Idiot."

Shelby smiled. "I'm sure I will." She got to the door but Rachel called her again.

"Mom." Her eyes were closed now "I love you." She mumbled it very softly and it had been barely understandable, but Shelby walked back to her.

"I love you too." She brushed her hair away from her face and walked out turning off the light.

* * *

The next day was spent moving. Shelby couldn't afford staying in this place for the rest of their stay, the first week wasn't paid by her and a suite at The Plaza was quite expensive. They packed their stuff and took a cab to the Upper East Side to a gorgeous Bed & Breakfast. It wasn't that cheap but they had a small loft all for them with a kitchenette, two beds and a bathroom. Shelby and Rachel had never shared a bathroom, but Shelby knew Rachel wasn't messy so she hoped it wouldn't be a problem.

It was run by a woman in her sixties, Mrs. Jefferson, who had retired a few years back. She opened the door with a huge smile. "You must be Shelby."

Shelby smiled back. "Yes, and this is my daughter Rachel."

She helped them with their bags and ushered them up the stairs. "You don't look old enough to be a mother of a teenager."

Shelby smiled. "Thanks but I am."

"She had me very young and she has really good genes."

Mrs. Jefferson laughed. "She really does. You're really cute."

Their room was on the first floor, thankfully, since Shelby didn't think she could carry all of her stuff for much longer.

They entered the room. It had a counter with a hot plate, a microwave and a small fridge, the two beds and a couch in front of a tiny TV. The bathroom was separated by some walls that were obviously added later.

"So, this is your room. Breakfast is served around 8 in the dining room on the ground floor." She handed Shelby two keys, one for the main door and one for her room and got out.

Shelby watched as Rachel considered what bed she wanted to sleep in. She finally decided on the one closest to the window and threw her suitcase on top to start unpacking.

"This isn't that bad, is it?" Shelby wasn't sure how Rachel felt about sharing a room. They've never spent that much time together. Even the past week they always had some time apart, even if it was only at night when they went to bed. Now they would be together for the whole day and share a room at night and Kate was gone so Rachel didn't have anyone else she could talk to.

"It's great, mom. I mean, it's not a suite at The Plaza but we'll cope." Rachel got her toiletries out and took them into the bathroom.

Shelby started to unpack too. "Rachel?"

Rachel came back and rolled her eyes. "I know, I won't use your shampoo again."

"I wasn't going to say that, but don't use my shampoo again."She took some clothes out and hung them in the closet. "I was going to say that, since we don't have anything planned for today we could go shopping for some stuff to have around in case we get hungry and then go to bed early."

Rachel threw her almost empty suitcase under the bed. "Sounds good."

"Let me just call Will and then we can go."

Will was just getting back from the supermarket when his phone started ringing. He put his bags down awkwardly while trying to get his phone out of his pocket. A bag with some apples fell and they rolled down his hall. He finally managed to pull out his phone and held it to his ear while chasing the apples down. "Hello."

"Hi." Shelby was still getting used to this whole heart-missing-a-beat when she heard Will's voice. She wasn't a fan.

"How's it going just you and Rachel?"

"It's been good. We haven't really done anything. How are you?"

"Lonely. I was thinking of getting a dog or something but I don't think I'll have time for it once school starts again."

"Aw, poor Will has nothing to do. Speaking of things to do, are you watering my plants?"

"Yes ma'am." Will took a bite out of one of the apples he rescued.

Shelby smirked. "Don't ma'am me. I have some books there if you want to borrow one next time you stop by, just take care of them and don't steal them."

"That sounds good. I promise to take care of them as if they were my own."

"Very funny Will. I have to go, I just called to say hi and hear your voice."

Will smiled. "Why?"

Shelby rolled her eyes. Ever since she told him she loved him he'd made her say it over and over. It was getting annoying but it helped her feel less weird about it. "Because I love you."

"I love you too. Say hi to Rachel for me."

Shelby hung up and walked over to Rachel who was sitting in front of the TV flipping through the channels. "Let's go."

Rachel got up smiling widely

"What?"

"You and Mr. Schue are really cute. I didn't mean to listen but there was really no where I could go."

Shelby glared at her unconvincingly. "I thought I already told you not to call me cute." She turned and walked out.

Rachel ran to catch up with her, laughing. "Well you are; it's not my fault!"

**

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AN: So the first one to mention the Rent cat suit reference was KateGreysFan and the first one who got both references was fluffycheer. The other one was Liz's pie hat, Kristin Chenoweth wore one on Pushing Daisies. So since you won I thought that as a prize, if you want to, you can to choose something and I will put it in the next chapter, something small like a funny word or idk a clown riding a unicycle, just put it in your review. There are no references in this one, but still review!**


	17. Wonderful

**AN: This one's a bit shorter than the other ones but I needed to think where I wanted to go with this. I hope you like it.**

**... Some people were having trouble viewing this, I'm posting it again to see if that helps.  
**

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Chapter 17: Wonderful

"Mmm… Yeah, right there."

Rachel opened her eyes. She thought she heard something but she saw Shelby still asleep on her bed. Rachel turned and closed her eyes again.

"Yes, just like that."

Rachel turned back. She didn't imagine that. Shelby was talking in her sleep.

"Will… Oh… Yes"

Rachel scrunched up her nose. She was having a sex dream. This sucked. She pressed her pillow to her ears for a while. She peeked out, it seemed like she'd stopped mumbling. She put her pillow under her head again and fluffed it before lying back down. Just as she was closing her eyes Shelby started muttering again.

"Don't stop… mmm Will"

Rachel almost cried. She couldn't take this anymore. She got up and crossed the short distance to Shelby's bed hugging her pillow to her chest. She poked Shelby's shoulder. "Mom?"

Shelby turned to her other side and gave a girly giggle that made Rachel cringe. She grabbed her shoulder and shook her a bit forcefully. "Mom! Wake up please!"

Shelby sat up startled. "Rachel, what's wrong? Are you ok? What happened?"

"I'm ok. You were talking in your sleep and woke me up."

Shelby flopped back down on the bed. "Don't scare me like that. I thought something happened to you." She rubbed her face with her hand and sighed. "I'm sorry I woke you up. Can we go back to sleep now?"

"I think I might need a few therapy sessions to go back to sleep after what I heard."

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Don't be so dramatic. What did I say?"

Rachel looked away from her and mumbled, turning bright red. "Oh yes Will, don't stop."

Shelby looked confused for a moment. "I said that?" Rachel nodded and the Shelby remembered her dream and smiled. "Oh yeah, it was good."

Rachel buried her face in her hands. "Mom!"

Shelby chuckled. "I'm sorry. I'll try not to think about Will before I go to bed, but I can't control what's in my head while I'm asleep. I just miss him and… that."

"I don't care, just don't vocalize it." Rachel sat on Shelby's bed and bit her bottom lip nervously. "Is it really that good?"

Shelby didn't think she was the right person to give a sex talk and she didn't know what her dads had told her already. She decided to be honest, within the limits of reason. "If you're lucky enough to find the right person, it can be really good. And I don't mean the right person experience wise, although that can be helpful, but someone you trust and you have a real connection with."

"How do you make sure it's the right person?"

"Are we talking about someone in particular or in general?"

Rachel shrugged. "Just… in general."

"Good, because if you're thinking about someone you already know, I have to remind you I'm your mom so all I can say is don't have sex, even if I know that doesn't work." Shelby smiled and brushed Rachel's hair back. "But when it's right you'll know it. The first time is rarely good, especially if it's his first time too. But don't let that discourage you, it gets better."

Rachel frowned and Shelby sat up to hug her. "Don't worry so much about it. It'll happen when it happens. Just be sure that when it happens you're careful. You don't want to end up like your pregnant friend or worse, with some horrible disease."

Rachel grimaced. "I think you've grossed me out enough for today. I'm going back to bed. Try to be quiet." She kissed Shelby and went back to her bed. She got inside the covers and closed her eyes.

Just as she was falling asleep she heard Shelby mumble again. "Oh yes."

She groaned and heard Shelby laugh. "I'm kidding, I'll stop now. Go to sleep."

* * *

Shelby stayed in bed while Rachel went down for breakfast. She couldn't go back to sleep after Rachel woke her up, so she was really tired. A few minutes after Rachel left, her phone started ringing. She took it from the bedside table and answered groggily.

"Hey, did I wake you up?" Will didn't think she'd still be asleep. She usually got up very early.

Shelby groaned. "Rachel woke me up in the middle of the night and I had a hard time falling back to sleep. I was having a really good dream too."

"What were you dreaming about?"

"You"

Will smiled. "Really? What was I doing?"

Shelby turned to lie on her back. "You know that thing you do with your tongue that drives me crazy?"

"Yeah…"

Shelby smiled at how his voice got lower. "Well, that"

Will groaned. "You're sure you want to stay for two more weeks? You could come back and I could give you a live performance."

Shelby laughed. "I can wait."

Will banged his head on the wall next to the phone. "You know you're killing me, right?"

"I'll be back soon and you can do whatever you want with me."

_Two can play this game._ "You know, up until now we have been having lame sex. Now that you admitted that you love me it's going to get way better."

Shelby cocked her eyebrow. "Really?"

"I'll show you when you get back. What are you wearing?"

"I'm not going down that path with you right now."

"Spoilsport!"

She laughed at his childish attitude. "Rachel is coming back in a bit."

"Fine, but when you come back I'm not letting you leave the bedroom for at least two days."

"I'll hold you to that." She stretched. "I should get up. I need a cold shower now, thanks to you."

Will smiled. "I need one too. I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

The first show they saw was Wicked. They had already seen it but they still loved it. Rachel came out gushing about everything, talking a mile a minute with a huge smile on her face.

"Mandy Gonzalez and Katie Rose Clarke were great. I mean, they're not as good as the original cast but I think they pulled it off amazingly. I love everything about it. Well maybe not the monkeys, they're kind of scary. But everything else is awesome, the songs, the choreography, the dialogue, the costumes." Rachel did a little twirl as they walked down the street. "I just love it all. It's just wonderful." Rachel sang the word wonderful and laughed at her own pun.

Shelby laughed. "It was really good. I think Mandy Gonzalez could improve a little, but you can't expect anyone to do it as good as the original cast. The original Elphaba is just perfect."

"I know she's… she's…" Rachel couldn't find a word that described her. "."

Shelby laughed. "What?"

"She's the best; I just couldn't find a word to describe just how great she is. Thanks for staying with me for the Stage Door. I love getting my Playbill signed."

"Well, if you get Bernadette Peters to sign your Playbill when we go to "A Little Night Music", I will be jealous. That's an autograph worth having."

Rachel chuckled. "You know, when I first started looking for you with Jesse, I made a folder with research that I thought proved Bernadette Peters was my mom. I also did one for Patti LuPone."

Shelby stopped walking and Rachel realized a few feet later so she turned. "Why did you stop?"

Shelby didn't move so Rachel walked back to where she was. "Mom? Hello?"

Shelby looked at Rachel. "Sorry, I was just thinking." She moved and Rachel started chattering about Wicked again.

They reached their room and Shelby sat on her bed. Rachel went into the bathroom to get ready for bed and then went to her bed.

"Rachel, do you wish I was different?"

Rachel looked at her; she was looking at her hands resting in her lap. "Different? Like taller or something?"

Shelby sighed and looked at Rachel. "Do you wish I was someone else, someone more successful like Bernadette Peters or Patti LuPone?"

"Mom, it was stupid. I was just afraid to really look for you."

"But would you be happier if I was?"

Rachel sighed and sat next to Shelby. "All I ever wanted from my mom was to have her in my life and you are here now. I don't need anything else." Rachel hugged Shelby. "Besides, you're better than Bernadette Peters."

Shelby chuckled. "Really?"

Rachel nodded. "Of course, I mean, you're prettier. If she had been my mom I wouldn't look as good as I look, right?" Rachel looked at Shelby and frowned, she looked sad. "Don't look so sad."

Shelby cupped Rachel's cheek. "I'm not, really. It's just sometimes…" She took a deep breath. "Sometimes I feel like I'm not good enough for you."

"But you are. Most of the time I feel like I'm not good enough for you." Rachel looked down and Shelby hugged her.

"Baby, you are the greatest kid ever. You're funny and talented and, like you said, you have my stunning good looks. I'm really happy I get to be a part of your life."

"So… we're both amazing, huh?"

Shelby laughed. "I guess we are."

* * *

They were watching "A Little Night Music". Bernadette Peters was belting out a song when Rachel turned to Shelby. "You're better."

Shelby smiled and kissed Rachel's hair. "No, I'm not. But thank you."

**

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AN: She is better LOL. So, I'm going to do something you might not like in the next chapter, but I thought this was getting too fluffy and it needed some drama. It might take me a bit since it's really gonna hurt me to write it. Your reviews might help me cope with what I'm about to do so review :)**


	18. It Only Hurts When I Breathe

**AN: Ok so, here it is. It actually hurt me to write this. I feel horrible right now. Like really, really horrible. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee and right now, that's a good thing.**

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Chapter 18: It Only Hurts When I Breathe

They had been waiting for more than an hour in front of the Broadway theatre. Shelby was starting to regret telling Rachel she didn't mind waiting as long as it took for Sean Hayes to come out. Most people had given up after the female lead came out and told them he would take a while. Rachel had looked at her with her puppy dog eyed expression and asked if they could stay. Shelby couldn't say no to that. Finally, he came out, almost two hours after the play ended.

The subway station was nearly deserted when the exited the train. Rachel shuddered as they came out into the street. "I'm really sorry we had to wait for so long, mom."

"It's fine, Rach. We've done every stage door. I couldn't let you walk away without that autograph."

They had spent the last week and a half shopping, going to museums and to shows, waiting for autographs after each. They only had half a week left in New York and the only pair of tickets they had left were the ones for American Idiot. Rachel was having the time of her life. She really enjoyed spending time with her mom and not having to worry about school or Glee or boys.

Rachel held on to Shelby's arm as they made their way through the streets. They were just a few blocks away from where they were staying when a man came up to them. "Hey, you got a light?" He waved a cigarette in front of Shelby.

"Sorry, I don't."

They took a step forward but the guy didn't move. He shrugged and put the cigarette away. "It's ok. Can you tell me the time?"

Shelby moved the sleeve of her jacket to look at her watch and the man grabbed her wrist. "Nice watch." He pulled out a knife and pointed it at Shelby. "Mind if I take it?"

Shelby pushed Rachel behind her. "You can have it."

Shelby started to take it off but she was shaking too much. She finally managed to open the latch and gave it to the man taking a step back.

"The purse too"

Shelby handed him her purse and waited for the man to leave. He moved around Shelby to look at Rachel.

"What a pretty girl." He grabbed Rachel's chin and Shelby slapped his hand away.

"Do not touch my daughter." Shelby gave him a deadly glare and the man flinched just for a second.

He smiled. "That your daughter?" He turned back towards Rachel. "Your mom's real hot, a total MILF. You're real hot too, kid."

Rachel was shaking a lot. She held on to Shelby's jacket as she moved, trying to keep herself between the man and Rachel at all times.

"You got what you wanted, you can go now."

The man chuckled darkly. "Listen bitch, you don't get to tell me what to do." He pressed the knife to Shelby's cheek lightly and dragged it down, leaving a faint red mark. Shelby felt a sting when he reached the bottom. A tiny drop of blood slid down her jaw. "Now, you're gonna move so I can take a good look at the girl."

Shelby didn't move and the man got angry. "I said move, bitch!" He slapped her hard and she went down, falling on her arm.

The man walked up to Rachel who had started crying. She took a step back as the man approached her.

Shelby's arm hurt really badly but she got up. The man reached out and brushed Rachel's cheek. Shelby saw he had lowered the hand with the knife. "I told you not to touch my daughter." He hit his temple with all the force she could muster. Her arm screamed out with pain and she pressed it to her body with a whimper.

The man stumbled back but recovered his footing quickly. He shook his head. "You shouldn't have hit me."

Shelby stood in front of Rachel again. The man moved towards them and stabbed Shelby on her left side, right under her breast. Rachel screamed and someone turned a light on in the building in front of them. Rachel saw the man's face for the first time. He looked at the bloody knife and then at Shelby with a terrified look on his face and ran away.

Shelby collapsed on Rachel's arms. She lowered her, sobbing. "Mom?"

There was a lot of blood on Shelby's shirt and Rachel opened her jacket to take a better look. There was a huge blood stain on the side of her blouse, and it was getting bigger. Rachel took off her own jacket and pressed it to the wound.

"Everything's going to be ok, mom, don't worry." She was also trying to calm herself down. She took out her cell and dialed 911 still putting pressure on the wound.

"I need an ambulance… We're on 74th street between Lexington and 3rd Avenue… Hurry up please." She put the phone down.

Shelby groaned when Rachel adjusted her grip on the jacket. "I'm sorry, mom." She saw Shelby staring to close her eyes. "Please don't leave me. Please, please, please, I can't lose you." She sobbed, shaking uncontrollably.

The hand that was holding her jacket was covered in blood and she tried not to look at it. Instead she focused on Shelby's face and tried to keep her awake. She brushed her brow frantically. "Stay with me, mom. You promised you wouldn't leave me again."

A few minutes later she heard a siren. She felt someone come up from behind her and move her away from Shelby. They put her in a gurney and wheeled her to the ambulance. She ran behind them but someone stopped her. She wrestled away from the EMT that was holding her back. "That's my mom. I have to go with her. Let me go!"

"You can ride in the front. You will only get in the way if you're on the back." Rachel stopped trying to get away and let the man push her into the front seat.

* * *

The only thing on Shelby's mind, after her assailant pushed her to the ground, was getting him away from Rachel. She didn't care her arm hurt like hell or that he had a knife, she had to protect her baby.

She saw the crazy look in the man's eyes when he turned after she hit him. She knew he was going to do something. She just hoped he did it to her and not to Rachel.

She saw him move the hand holding the knife and felt the blade plunging into her side. She heard Rachel's scream and saw the man running away. She felt the cold pavement under her and saw Rachel hovering above her with tears in her eyes. She saw her take her jacket off and felt pressure on her side. It hurt a lot, the pain in her arm now forgotten, replaced by a pain a hundred times worse.

She closed her eyes for a moment. She could hear Rachel speaking but couldn't make out the words. She felt a sharp pain at her side and groaned. She opened her eyes. Rachel's face was full of tears. She was brushing her hair away from her face and telling her something. She tried to concentrate on Rachel's voice. "Stay with me, mom. You promised you wouldn't leave me again." Shelby wanted to tell her she would never leave her but she couldn't gather enough strength to say the words out loud.

She saw Rachel move away and her face was replaced by the face of a woman in a dark blue shirt. She felt herself being lifted and whatever was under her shaking. Suddenly, everything got very bright. She could see faces hovering over her and felt someone rip her blouse open. She closed her eyes. The last thought on her mind was Rachel's smile as Sean Hayes signed her Playbill.

* * *

Rachel opened the ambulance door before it had stopped completely at New York Presbyterian. They rushed the gurney through the doors and Rachel saw one of the EMTs on top of the gurney, straddling Shelby and giving her CPR. She froze for a second. CPR was never good. CPR meant you were dead and they were trying to bring you back. She ran into the hospital and saw them go through a set of double doors.

She was about to go through them when a nurse grabbed her arm and gave her a stern look. "You can't go in there."

Rachel turned to the nurse. "They took my mom in there." It was all she could say before she collapsed, sobbing loudly.

An African-American nurse that was behind a counter walked up to Rachel. She gave the other nurse a disapproving look. She took Rachel by the elbow and pulled her to a chair. She sat down next to her. "What's your name sweetie?"

"Rachel... Berry" She tried to talk in between sobs and sniffs.

"Rachel, is there someone I can call for you? Your dad maybe?"

Rachel shook her head. "My dads are in Ohio. We're on vacation I don't know anyone…" Rachel took out her cell phone. Shelby had given her Liz's number when they got there, in case of an emergency. She had disregarded it at the moment, thinking that if she needed something she could just call Shelby. She was glad she had saved it.

"There is someone." She fumbled with her phone and gave the number to the nurse.

She walked to the counter and grabbed the phone. "What's your mother's name?"

"Shelby Corcoran"

Liz went to the nurses' station. She had gotten there as fast as she could after she got the call from the hospital. They didn't tell her much, only that Shelby had been brought into the ER and that they needed her to come stay with Rachel. "I got a call that my friend was brought in. Her daughter's here too."

The nurse who helped Rachel stood up and pointed to a door on the far side. "She's in the waiting room."

"And my friend?"

"The doctors haven't come out yet. I don't know anything." The nurse gave her a sad look. "I'll try to find something out, you can wait with the girl. I'll go find you as soon as I know something. Also, there are some cops here that would like to talk to her."

"Thanks." Liz walked into the waiting room and looked around. She found Rachel in a chair in the corner, hugging her knees up to her chest.

She rushed towards her and sat in the chair next to her. Rachel jumped when she placed her hand on her knee. "Rachel, what happened?"

Rachel looked at Liz and fell into her arms. She let her cry for a while, holding her tight, before she asked her again what happened.

Rachel took some shallow breaths and pulled away from Liz. "We were mugged and the guy stabbed my mom." She started weeping again and Liz pulled her back into a hug. "It's all my fault."

"How is some crazy man attacking your mom your fault?"

"I asked her to stay with me to get my Playbill signed. If we had just left the theatre when the play ended, none of this would have happened."

Liz pulled her closer and rubbed her back. "Sweetie, you can't know that."

Rachel shook her head with her eyes squeezed shut. "It's my fault she's here."

Liz looked down at Rachel. Her right hand was covered in blood and she didn't have a jacket. There was a bloody hand print on the skirt she was wearing and her shirt had some blood stains too. She took her to the bathroom and cleaned her up. "Do you want to go to get some clean clothes?"

Rachel shook her head. "I can't leave until I know my mom is fine."

They went back into the waiting room. Liz placed Rachel's head on her lap and smoothed her hair. After a while, her crying subsided, she would only sniff now and then.

"She was trying to protect me."

Liz had been wondering what was taking them so long so she didn't understand what Rachel said. "What?"

"She was trying to protect me. That's why he stabbed her. She wouldn't let him touch me so he stabbed her."

"She's going to be ok, Rachel. Don't worry. Your mom's a fighter." Liz was really trying not to show how worried she actually was. She loved Shelby like a sister and couldn't bear the thought of losing her. She could feel tears prickling her eyes and it was hard to breathe normally, but she fought against it. She couldn't break down; she needed to stay strong for Rachel.

A couple of cops walked in and Rachel sat up.

"Hi, we're detectives Ryan and Esposito." The men flashed their badges. "We would like to take your statement."

Liz squeezed Rachel's hand encouragingly and Rachel gave her a tiny nod. She took a deep breath and told them what had happened, shuddering a few times as she remembered how that man had hit Shelby and then stabbed her.

"Did you see the guy?" Rachel nodded. Detective Esposito turned to Liz. "Are you going to stay here? We can send the sketch artist in the morning." Liz nodded.

He handed Rachel a card. "If you remember anything else, call me."

Rachel took the card and nodded. It had the cop's name and beneath it 'Homicide, NYPD'. Rachel clutched the card in her hand. "Wait! You're a homicide detective? Is my mom…?" Her throat closed up at the thought.

Detective Ryan walked back towards them. "No, she's not. We are from Homicide but we also investigate other violent crimes." He looked helplessly at Liz who was rubbing Rachel's shoulder. "We'll send the sketch artist in a few hours. I'm really sorry."

* * *

After a while of not knowing anything about Shelby, Liz decided to go back to the nurses' station. The nurse she had talked to earlier was gone and the other one wasn't really helpful. She was turning back when the nurse came out from the double doors. "How's my friend?"

"They took her up to surgery a while ago. They're still in there."

"Is she going to be ok?"

The nurse looked away. "I talked to the ER doctor who saw her when she came in. He said she had a stab wound on the lower left side of her chest. She had bled considerably but they wouldn't know how extensive the damage was until they opened her up."

Liz nodded trying really hard not to cry. "What are her chances?"

"Depending on what was damaged. I can't really say. I'm really sorry. You can go wait upstairs and wait. I'll call the nurses there to keep you updated."

Liz nodded and bit her bottom lip. "Thanks." She gave a halfhearted smile to the nurse.

She didn't move, tying to control her emotions before she went back to where Rachel was. "Your mom was moved up for surgery. We can go wait there if you want."

Rachel nodded and got up. She was exhausted. She hadn't slept all night except for a few moments when she closed her eyes while she was on Liz's lap. The moment she closed her eyes, images of her mom lying on the ground bleeding filled her head.

They reached the surgical floor and Liz led her to a couch. "I'm going to the bathroom. Are you ok staying here alone for a few minutes?" Rachel nodded.

Liz entered the bathroom, she didn't need to go but she had to get away from Rachel before she broke down. She entered a stall and sat down. She felt like something was pressing down on her chest. After trying to take a few deep breaths she started crying, burying her face in her hands.

**

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AN: The cops are from my currently favorite cop show set in NYC. The first one to guess will get to kill me for writing this chapter. I really do feel bad. When I write Shelby, I think about how Idina would play it and how she would say things and stuff, so doing this was like the most painful thing ever. Reviews will make me feel less crappy.**


	19. Don't Let Go

**AN: This chapter's reference is really funny. I thought I might do something funny since this has been too angsty. It's not the Castle thing again, just so you know. There is a Castle reference here, but that's not the funny one. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter more than the last one.**

* * *

Chapter 19: Don't Let Go

Liz found Rachel at the exact same spot she left her. It looked as if she hadn't moved a muscle. She sat on the other end of the couch. "Rachel you have to sleep, you've been up all night."

Rachel gave her a look of sheer terror. She knew that the second she closed her eyes she would be back in that street, pressing her jacket to her mother's side and feeling her blood between her fingers. She couldn't sleep, at least not until she knew her mom was alright.

"At least lie down for a bit." She patted her lap and Rachel acquiesced. She placed her head on Liz's lap. Liz started running her hand through her hair to try and relax her a bit.

A woman in jeans and a brown leather jacket walked up to them with a man carrying a sketch book behind her. "Rachel Berry?" Rachel nodded.

"I'm detective Beckett. I'm working your mother's case with the detectives you met earlier."

She introduced the other man as the precinct's sketch artist and Rachel described the man who attacked her mom as well as she could. She was surprised to remember so many details about him. Even when she had an almost perfect memory, she had only seen him for a couple of seconds.

The man finished the sketch and showed it to Rachel. She felt a gut wrenching pain at the sight of him and she just nodded to confirm the drawing was accurate.

Detective Becket placed her hand on Rachel's shoulder. "I promise I will do my best to find this man, Rachel."

Rachel thanked her quietly and they both walked away. Liz noticed she was trembling and hugged her. "Everything is going to be fine, Rachel."

Rachel wanted to believe her but with every minute that passed without news of her mom's status, the pressure in her chest got worse and she was starting to worry she wouldn't see her again.

* * *

More than an hour later, a doctor came out and walked to them. Rachel sat up and tensed up. Liz reached out and grabbed her hand reassuringly even though her stomach was doing a laundry machine impression.

The doctor pulled his mask away from his mouth. "Are you Shelby Corcoran's family?"

Rachel nodded biting her lip. "I'm her daughter."

"Your mom is out of surgery. She was lucky; the knife hit her ribs so it didn't go so deep. None of her internal organs were ruptured, although she did have extensive nerve damage. We controlled the bleeding and patched her up."

Rachel sighed relieved. "Can I see her now?"

"She's in room 455 just down the hall but she's still under anesthesia." Rachel got up and started walking as soon as the doctor said the room number.

Liz smiled to the doctor. "Thank you, doctor."

"She will be in a lot of pain for a while but she should make a full recovery."

Liz thanked him again and walked to the room.

Rachel ran to her mother's side as soon as she was in the room. She looked pale and had an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose. She grabbed her hand tentatively and was shocked to find it was really cold. A tear rolled down her cheek. "I'm really sorry, mom."

Liz walked up to her and placed her hand on Rachel's shoulder. "I told you she would be fine."

Rachel nodded and felt the stress and exhaustion of the last few hours hit her. She felt her legs giving out on her and her eyelids were dropping as she looked around the room for something to sit on. There was a chair and a small couch. She walked to the couch and lied down, falling asleep almost immediately.

Liz pulled the chair up to Shelby's side and grabbed her hand. "I'm really glad you're ok, Shelby. You really scared me." She sighed, she hadn't slept much either. "I was afraid I might lose you. Even if we don't see each other that often, it wouldn't be the same without you."

She rested her head on her arm. "I met a guy. I didn't tell you about it before because you were having all those troubles with Will and I didn't want to rub it in. His name is Taylor, we met at Starbucks. It was really sweet. I ordered a triple latte and he just walked up to the counter and said 'Keep your $3.55, this triple latte is on me.' I would really like you to meet him." After a while, she fell asleep too, with Shelby's hand still in hers.

* * *

Shelby opened her eyes and was blinded by the bright lights. She didn't know where she was. Her head was pounding and her left side hurt like hell. She moved her hand up and felt the plastic mask. She heard a beeping noise close to her. She opened her eyes again and looked around. She saw a machine like the ones they had at hospitals to monitor people's vitals. Suddenly everything came rushing back, the mugging, the man trying to hurt Rachel, the knife. She must have been taken to the hospital after the man stabbed her.

_Rachel!_ Shelby tried to sit up but she felt a pang at her side as soon as she moved. She whimpered. Liz woke up and pushed Shelby's shoulder down. "Don't move too much honey."

Shelby pulled the oxygen mask away. "Where's Rachel?" Her voice sounded weak and strained.

"She's sleeping right there." Shelby visibly relaxed. "Do you want me to get you some water?"

She was parched so she nodded. Liz nudged Rachel gently and waited for her to open her eyes. "She's up."

Rachel ran to the chair previously occupied by Liz and pulled it closer to the top part of the bed. She took her mom's hand. "Mom?"

Shelby looked at her and caressed her cheek with her free hand, smiling. "Baby."

Rachel started crying. She buried her face on her shoulder, careful not to hurt her. "I'm sorry, please forgive me, mom." Shelby hugged her, not really knowing why Rachel was apologizing.

Liz came back with the nurse and a bottle of water. Rachel stepped back to give them room. The nurse checked her monitor and took the mask off from her. "How are you feeling?"

"It hurts." She took a sip from the straw Liz put between her lips and felt a little better.

"The doctor will come in a moment to talk to you and he can give you something for the pain."

The nurse left. Shelby reached out, grabbed Rachel's hand and pulled her closer. "Are you ok?"

Rachel nodded. "He ran away after he..." She wiped a few tears away and squeezed Shelby's hand. "I thought you were going to..." Her throat closed up she couldn't breathe.

Shelby pulled her down and sat her on the bed. "I know, baby. Everything's good now." She reached up and wiped away her tears.

She turned towards Liz and smiled. "Thanks for coming."

Liz shrugged. "You would have done the same for me."

The doctor came in and explained to Shelby what had happened to her and what they had done to fix it. If she didn't have any complications and she started to heal as expected, she would be discharged in a few days. She had to stay on bed rest after that for at least two weeks and then take it easy until she was fully recovered.

Shelby hated feeling helpless and it couldn't get worse than this. The doctor gave her something for the pain and excused himself. Shelby gave a frustrated sigh. Liz knew her well enough to know this was going to be really hard for her and that she would not make it easy for anybody else either.

Shelby made a few estimations in her head. If everything went well she would be discharged just a few days after their scheduled return to Lima and she would be completely recovered before school started again.

Rachel was still holding her hand with a worried look. She hadn't let go of her hand since she woke up. She needed to feel her, to have tangible proof that she was alive.

Shelby turned to look at her. Her hair was a mess, her clothes were all bloody and she looked like she would drop from exhaustion in any moment. "Liz, could you take Rachel to get some sleep and to change?" She looked at Liz. She didn't look so good either. "You should get some rest too."

Liz nodded. "She can stay with me until you're discharged. We'll take your stuff to my place."

Rachel didn't move. "I don't want to leave you."

"I'm going to be fine, baby. I promise." Rachel didn't let her go. "You really need to sleep, Rachel. You're going to make yourself sick. Please?"

Rachel dropped her hand resignedly and kissed her forehead. "I love you, mom." She was suddenly very aware of how ephemeral life was, and she wanted her mom to know she loved her in case anything happened.

"I love you too."

Liz took Rachel's hand and led her out of the room.

Whatever the doctor gave her was starting to work. She wasn't in so much pain anymore but she was starting to feel very tired. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was relieved nothing had happened to Rachel and that apparently she wouldn't have any permanent problems. She was still pissed that she would be completely useless for a few weeks. Will was going to have to wait for those two days of not leaving the bedroom. _Oh crap, Will._

She had to tell Will about this. She groaned. He was going to flip out. She had to find a way to tell him without worrying him too much. Her cell phone was on her purse, which was stolen, so she had to wait for Rachel to come back to call him. She yawned. She decided to worry about it later and fell asleep.

**

* * *

AN: The first one to guess my Castle reference from the last chapter was bawxcog. You can either choose what I promised last chapter and kill me or chose something you would like me to add in the next chapter. Just to give you some ideas, last time KateGreysFan suggested the dream thing and fluffycheer asked for "" to be included at some point.**

**On a totally different topic, I was writing some fluff to get over my stabbing Shelby trauma from last chapter and decided to do some one shots as companion pieces to this. I'll post the first one later.**


	20. Mutiny

**AN: I'm on chapter 20 now, wow. I didn't think I could write so much. I actually finished this chapter yesterday but I was watching the White House Broadway thing and I didn't get a chance to proof it until today. Did anyone watch it? Idina was great!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee.**

* * *

Chapter 20: Mutiny

Shelby woke up a few hours later feeling like a sledge hammer had hit her head. The pain had subsided but the pain meds made her think slower and she didn't like it. She opened her eyes and saw Rachel back in the chair next to her bed reading a magazine.

"I thought I told you to go to sleep."

Rachel looked up from the magazine and smiled at her, scooching closer to Shelby. "I did, but I wanted to come back and Liz had her show so she dropped me off a few minutes ago. How are you feeling?"

"I've had better days."

Rachel smiled at her but her smile didn't reach her eyes. She looked away. "I checked with Mrs. Jefferson and we still have three days with the room. Liz said I could stay with her after that, until you're released and healthy enough to fly back to Lima."

Shelby frowned. She could see something else was wrong with Rachel. She looked at her for a while before answering. "You're flying back before me. Your dads are expecting you home in three days. Besides, I don't need you to stay here with me."

Rachel looked down and bit her bottom lip sniffing. "I didn't mean it like that, baby. I love to have you here. It's just that you'll get bored just sitting here, doing nothing." She squeezed Rachel's hand that was resting on the bed. "Have you called your dads?"

"Yes, they were worried. Liz talked to them and assured them I was being taken care of and that your condition was far from critical. They wanted to come, but I told them it wasn't necessary."

"See, you need to go home, Rach. I'll be fine and I'll be back in no time." She tried to make eye contact with Rachel but she kept her head down. She looked at the ceiling exasperated and sighed. "Can I use your phone to call Will?"

"Sure" Rachel handed her the phone. "I'm going to go get some coffee"

She was dreading calling Will. She didn't know how she was going to tell him. She couldn't just call him and say "Hey, I got stabbed but I'm ok. I'll be back in a few days, don't worry." Shelby took a deep breath and dialed the number. A tiny part of her wished she got his voice mail. She waited a few rings before Will answered. "Hi, Will, it's me."

He checked the number again since he hadn't recognized it when the phone was ringing. "Where are you calling me from?"

"Rachel's phone" Shelby sighed loudly.

Will had been sitting on his couch reading one of the books he borrowed from Shelby when he got the call. He put the book down and sat up when he heard her sigh. Something was wrong, she was tense. He waited for her to continue.

"I'm going to tell you something but I need you to promise me you won't freak out."

Will frowned. "Ok."

"I'm serious Will. You have to really mean it."

"Fine, I won't freak out." Will wondered what this was about.

"I, well, we, Rachel and me, we got mugged yesterday and the guy stabbed me."

Will stood up. "What? What do you mean the guy stabbed you? Are you ok? Where are you?"

"Will, you're freaking out. You said you weren't going to freak out. I'm in the hospital but I'm not that bad. They did some surgery and fixed me. There won't be any permanent damages although I'll probably get a pretty nasty scar." Shelby scrunched up her nose, she hadn't thought about the scar.

Will was now pacing around his living room. "Of course I'm freaking out! You had surgery? Why didn't you call me earlier?"

Shelby was starting to get annoyed by him. "I was unconscious until a few hours ago so calling you wasn't something I could do. Excuse me for not thinking about how you would feel about me being stabbed."

Will raked his hand across his face. "You're right, I was being unreasonable. I'm sorry. I just feel so helpless." He sat back down on his couch. He had to do something. "I'm going."

"What? No, I'm being released in a few days. There's no point in you coming all the way here."

Will started to look for his keys and went into his room to pack a bag. "I'm not asking you, Shelby, I'm telling you I'm going. In what hospital are you in?"

Shelby covered her eyes with her hand. This conversation was starting to give her a headache, even with the drugs she had taken. She knew that when Will got that no-nonsense tone, there was no arguing with him. "I'm at New York Presbyterian."

"Ok, I'll take the first flight there. I love you." He hung up the phone, not letting Shelby argue with him and walked out to get to the airport.

Shelby groaned. Will was coming, Rachel wanted to stay. Things were easier when nobody cared about her. They were worse in other ways but they were certainly easier.

A few minutes later, Rachel came back and sat back on the chair, a bit further away than before, and still not looking at Shelby. She saw her wipe her face a few times.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

She moved further back in her chair. "Nothing"

Shelby got slightly mad Rachel was lying to her. She used a softer version of her coach voice to see if it would have an effect on her. "Rachel, you're crying. I may be under the effect of a bunch of drugs but I'm not stupid. Talk to me."

Rachel looked up. Shelby hardly ever used her coach voice on her. Shelby raised her eyebrow questioningly and Rachel looked down again. Shelby thought she was going to stay quiet, but after a while Rachel spoke. "I can't leave you when I'm the reason why you're here."

Shelby didn't understand. Why was she blaming herself? She didn't stab her. "What do you mean by that?"

Rachel stood up and turned her back to Shelby. "If I hadn't been so stubborn about getting my Playbill signed, we would have left earlier and none of this would have happened."

"Rachel" When she didn't turn around she raised and hardened her voice. "Rachel, come here."

Rachel turned back and walked to the bed, her arms around her chest. Shelby reached up and grabbed her hand pulling her down to sit next to her. She kept Rachel's hand in hers. "This isn't your fault. Things like this can happen at any time. We could have left the theatre right after it ended and I could still be here. If you want to blame someone, blame that scum bag that stabbed me. I need you to tell me you understand. You are not responsible for this, ok?" Rachel nodded. "Come here."

Shelby opened her arms and Rachel leaned down for a hug. The second she felt Shelby's arms close around her she started crying again. Shelby pulled her tightly against her good side. "It's ok, baby. I'm ok. Nothing bad is going to happen now."

She let her cry, rubbing her back soothingly and hushing her softly. Rachel started to calm down and her breathing became less erratic. Shelby kissed her head and pulled her up. She wiped her tears away and smiled. "I'm sorry you didn't get to see American Idiot."

Rachel chuckled. "I already saw it, don't worry about it."

"I think you need to go get a tissue." Shelby wrinkled her nose and pushed her off the bed. Rachel went into the bathroom and came out blowing her nose. Shelby waited until she was done. "You're still leaving in three days."

"Mooooom!" Rachel said it in a whiney voice and pouted.

"Will's coming and I don't need everyone hovering around me. I'll be back a few days after you do. It would calm me to know you're at home with your dads and that I don't have to worry about you eating or sleeping."

Rachel got really mad with that last comment. "So you would rather have your boyfriend here than your daughter?"

"You know I don't, it's just…"

"And I'm just something to worry about? If I bother you so much why did you ask me to come in the first place?"

"You know that's not true, Rachel. Stop acting like a kid."

"I'm not acting like a kid."

Shelby was really getting mad now and she got her full on Shelby Corcoran attitude on. "You are. You're going back and that's the end of it."

She gave her a look that said she didn't want to hear any arguments so Rachel flopped down on the chair with her arms crossed and turned away from her. "Fine!"

"Did you eat something?"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I had lunch with Liz. I'll go buy something when she comes back from her show."

Shelby stared at the ceiling wondering how on earth did they go from hugging, to them practically yelling at each other. She wasn't going to let her guilt her into letting her stay. She rarely used her mom card but she was going to use it today. She was always very lenient with Rachel, afraid that she might hurt her feelings or do something to ruin what they had, but it was about time she put her foot down. She was her mother and Rachel had to do what she told her to.

They remained stubbornly quiet until Liz came back, Rachel flipping noisily through her magazine and Shelby staring at the ceiling. She knew they must look pathetic just sulking in their anger, but they were both too obstinate to speak right now.

Liz came in smiling, carrying a brown bag and two Starbucks cups. "Hi guys! Rach, I brought you some food since I assume you haven't left your mom's side since I dropped you off."

Rachel got up and took the bag from her hand. "Thanks, I'll go eat it outside."

Liz looked at Rachel leave. "What did I say?"

Shelby sighed frustrated. "Nothing, she's mad at me. I told her she had to go back to Lima in three days."

"Why?" Liz took a seat on the chair Rachel emptied and sipped her coffee.

"Because I'm not her only family and her dads are waiting for her."

Liz raised an eyebrow at her. "I bet her dads would understand if she wanted to stay with you, given the circumstances."

Shelby rolled her eyes. She was tired of having this discussion over and over. She wasn't used to people questioning her. Even if Liz used to do it all the time when they lived together, she was used to hearing people just say "Yes, Ms. Corcoran." and do whatever she asked them to do. "I know they would, but it's not fair to keep her here, they haven't seen her in three weeks. And I don't want to keep imposing on you. You've been great and all but you shouldn't have to keep an eye on my daughter."

Liz shrugged. "I don't mind."

She glared at Liz. "I know you don't. I wasn't asking if you did."

"So your only valid argument is that her dads will miss her?"

"I don't want her to be in a hospital all day."

"But she wants to be." She hid her smile behind her coffee cup, she knew Shelby was getting mad.

"God, is today 'let's annoy the hell out of Shelby' day? Everyone's been extremely seditious today; you, Will, Rachel. Why can't you just do what I say and shut up like everybody else?" She threw her arms up frustrated and hurt herself. She whimpered.

"Stop moving so much or I'm calling the nurse to tie you up." She raised her eyebrow, challenging her to protest. Shelby groaned and settled down.

"So you called Will?"

"Yes, he's coming over even though I told him not to."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Of course he's coming, he loves you." She pulled the chair closer to Shelby. "Listen, sweetie, you're going to have to let people take care of you for the next few weeks. I know it's hard and I know you're the great Shelby Corcoran and you don't need help. But if you don't let people help you, you might hurt yourself."

"I know."

Rachel came back in and sat on the couch still pouting. Liz gave Shelby a small smile. "Rachel, do you want me to take you to my place? I can stay with your mom."

Rachel shrugged. "I don't care. Mr. Schue is coming anyway so she probably doesn't need you to stay either."

Liz rolled her eyes. She was used to Shelby being this dramatic so it didn't surprise her Rachel was just like that too. She stood up and walked to the door.

Rachel stood up behind her. "Rachel, can I talk to you before you leave?"

Rachel reluctantly walked to Shelby's side. Shelby took her hand and Rachel didn't bother to pull away. "How long are you going to stay mad at me?"

Shelby's despaired look broke Rachel's heart. "I'm not mad, mom. I just want to stay with you."

"Nothing is going to happen to me if you leave. I promise I'll be back as soon as I can." A tear fell down Shelby's cheek. "I'm not doing this because I don't want you to be with me. You were the first person I asked about when I woke up." Rachel wiped Shelby's tear. "I will come back, ok?"

"I'm not mad, really. I don't agree with your decision but I'm not mad. I'm sorry I acted like a child earlier." She bent down and kissed her. "I'll be back in the morning."

**

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AN: No references this chapter. Sammichbatch was the first one to mention the "Taylor the Latte Boy" reference from last chapter. Same procedure, you suggest something and I try to put it in the next chapter. If you don't know what "Taylor the Latte Boy" is, look it up on Youtube, it's awesome. Let me know what you thought about this chapter. **


	21. Brave

**AN: So, Sammichbatch asked me to use the lyrics from "Brave" in this chapter. It turned out kind of weird but I hope you guys like it and you don't think it's too forced. This still has around 2 or 3 more chapters left, I haven't really decided when to end it. What do you think?**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Glee.**

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Chapter 21: Brave

Liz was waiting by the elevators when Rachel came out of Shelby's room. "Ready?" Rachel just nodded.

They got into a cab and Rachel just looked out the window without saying a word. After a while Liz turned to her. "Don't be so hard on your mom. She's not used to letting people see her like this."

"Like what, a person?" Rachel said sarcastically.

Liz chuckled softly. "Yeah" She put her hand on Rachel's knee. "Your mom likes people to think she's indestructible. She hates for people to see she's vulnerable, especially the people she thinks it's her job to protect. She's been that way ever since I met her, I think it has something to do with giving you up. She's been trying to stay strong though all of this, for you, but I can see it's really hard for her."

Rachel nodded. "She seems more worried about me eating and sleeping properly than about her. I want to stay and help her."

"I know sweetie, but she won't let you. It's not because she doesn't love you, in fact, it's because she does. The best thing you can do right now is go home like she said." She hugged Rachel. "She'll be back in no time. You won't even have time to miss her. Besides, it's unhealthy to want to be with your mom so much."

Rachel chuckled and wiped her cheeks. "I guess you're right. I'll do what she says these days and then go home. You'll stay with her, right?"

"Yes, I'll make sure she's fine. She's used to me not doing what she says."

They arrived at the B&B and Rachel got out of the cab. "I'll pick you up in the morning and take you to the hospital."

Rachel got out and stayed holding the door open for a second. "Thanks Liz, for everything."

"It's no problem honey. I would do anything for your mom."

Rachel went up to her room. Since she had been too tired when she was there before, she didn't notice how empty it felt now her mom wasn't sleeping here. She went to the closet and took out one of the t-shirts Shelby wore to bed. It smelled like fabric softener and Shelby's perfume. It made Rachel feel less alone. She changed into that and a pair of her own pajama bottoms. She walked to her bed but decided to sleep in the one Shelby was sleeping. She had gotten used to being tucked in. She knew she was being ridiculous, she had slept perfectly fine for sixteen years without her mother tucking her in. But you can't miss something you didn't know you could have.

She pressed her face to the pillow. She still felt like she had a hole inside of her. Blaming herself for what happened was stupid. But she couldn't help but think that, if they had left earlier, none of this would have happened. She tried really hard not to think about what happened. She tried not to think about how her mom's blood felt in her hands and how she thought she was going to lose her when she saw the EMT giving her CPR. She tried not to think about the fact that, just a day ago, she had sat on this bed with her mom and she had laughed about some stupid joke she had said. She tried not to think about how pale she looked today and all the tubes sticking out of her arm. She tried not to think that she was going to go back home in a couple of days and leave her mom like that.

She tried but she failed. She started crying. She couldn't believe she could still cry after she had been crying for almost a whole day straight. Her eyes were starting to burn but she couldn't stop.

She didn't know how she was going to do this. Tomorrow was going to be more than a little overwhelming. She shivered, the air was cold. She thought about the past 24 hours and she realized she was not the same anymore. She needed her mom but she wasn't there to catch her if she fell now. She couldn't let herself fall now. And even though she felt as though her mom was pushing her away, she wouldn't leave her standing on her own. Even though she was so desperate to stay, she had to leave, for her. She didn't think she could pull it off, but if she had learnt something from her mom, it was that she had to be brave.

* * *

Liz arrived at Shelby's room and found her still awake. "I thought you'd be asleep by now. You told me the thing they gave you for the pain made you sleepy."

"I asked the nurse to wait until you came back to give it to me." She straightened up a bit and Liz saw her wince.

Liz walked to the bed and rearranged her pillows carefully. "Aren't you in pain?"

"Not that much."

Liz arched an eyebrow. "Shelby"

"It hurts like hell, are you happy? I just had to know how Rachel was. Is she still mad at me?"

"I talked to her, she'll be fine." Liz walked to the door and opened it.

"Where are you going?"

"To find the nurse and get her to give you something for the pain."

* * *

The creak of the door woke Liz up. She turned from her spot in the couch and saw a really cute guy with curly hair come into the room.

Will stood at the door staring at Shelby with his mouth open. She looked pale and very fragile. Like she had been on the verge of breaking and they were barely able to put her together.

"Can I help you?"

Will turned and saw the short blonde woman at the couch for the first time. He recognized her from the picture on Shelby's house. He barely managed a smile in her direction. "I'm sorry, you must be Liz. I'm Will."

They shook hands and Liz smiled. "It's nice to finally meet you. Shelby said you were cute but she didn't say you were this cute."

He blushed and looked down. He glanced back at Shelby and the color drained from his face again. "How is she?"

"The doctor says she will be fine. But I don't think her stab wound is the biggest problem right now."

"What do you mean?"

Liz bit her bottom lip, unsure as to what to tell Will. "She's sending Rachel back and I don't think she will give you the warmest welcome."

"I wasn't expecting her to be very happy to see me. She's sending Rachel back?" Liz nodded grimly. Will thought that if someone could get through to Shelby, it would be Rachel.

"I can stay if you're tired."

Liz thanked him and walked out. Pulling the chair as close as he could get it to Shelby's side, he sat down and grabbed her hand. She looked better than he thought she would but she still looked bad. He started rubbing circles on her hand with his thumb. He didn't sleep. He just watched her. Sometimes her breathing would speed up and he would brush his fingers through her forehead to calm her down. He finally saw the sun starting to come through the windows.

He released Shelby's hand and stood up to stretch. He had been in that chair for hours. The door opened and the nurse entered. He sat on the couch so he wouldn't be in her way. The nurse raised her eyebrow at him. "You're the girl's father?"

Will didn't know what to answer. He didn't know if they would kick him out if he wasn't family. Thankfully he saw Shelby stirring awake. She groaned and opened her eyes. Running to her side, he took her hand.

She squinted up at him. "Will?"

"Hi honey." He kissed her forehead and she smiled.

Still smiling she cupped his cheek. "I told you not to come."

He smiled back and kissed her palm, his eyes bright with unshed tears. "I couldn't stay home."

The nurse cleared her throat. "I need to change her bandages."

Will stepped back with a sheepish look. "Of course"

The nurse uncovered Shelby's torso and removed her bandages. Shelby winced a little when the gauze was pulled from the wound. A red slash went down from the bottom to her breast to her waist. The stitches were visible all along the wound. Will turned a pasty green and grabbed Shelby's hand. The nurse cleaned it and Shelby closed her eyes biting her bottom lip. It hurt a lot and despite her efforts to stay calm, she squeezed Will's hand. He kneeled down and brushed her hair back from her face. "It's almost over, babe. I'm right here."

The nurse finished and wrapped her in a clean bandage. "I'll be right back to give you your antibiotics."

The nurse left and Shelby opened her eyes. Will was still kneeling next to her, a worried look on his face. "Don't look at me like that."

"I'm sorry it's just… It looks bad."

"I'm fine, Will." She let go of his hand and looked away from him. He sighed and got back in the chair leaning his elbows next to her on the bed.

"Are you just going to sit there and stare at me?"

"What would you like me to do?" he leaned back on the chair and crossed his arms.

"I don't know! Just stop looking at me like I'm about to die or something."

He raised his head and looked at the ceiling. "Is that better?"

"Perfect"

The stayed in silence until Will started tapping his foot on the floor. "Can you stop that?"

Will sighed. "I know you're just trying to annoy me Shelby, and let me tell you it's really working."

"You are the one who's annoying me. Just stop tapping your foot."

"Can't you just let me be here for you? I came because I was worried." Will stood up and then sat down on the couch to get some space between them.

"Well, nobody asked you to. And besides, I'm fine, I don't need you to worry about me."

Will grumbled exasperated. "I know you don't need me and I know you didn't want me to come, but I'm here now and I'm not leaving, so deal with it."

As Shelby was about to respond to that, the door opened and Rachel walked in. she handed a cup of coffee to Will. "Hi, Mr. Schue, Liz told me you were here. She had to do some stuff, she'll be here in a bit."

"Hi, Rachel, thanks."

Rachel noticed some tension between her mom and Mr. Schue. She walked to Shelby and kissed her. "Good morning, mom. How are you?"

"I'm better, Rach, thanks." Rachel sat on the chair that was now empty and took out a paper bag from the backpack she was carrying and handed it to Will. "Liz also sent you a bagel and Mrs. Johnson gave me some pastries for you, mom, but I don't know if I'm allowed to bring you food. I'll ask the nurse later."

Shelby's eyes lit up the second Rachel mentioned pastries. She had been eating horrible hospital food since yesterday and she couldn't take it anymore. Her eyes fell again when Rachel didn't take them out. Will noticed and chuckled. She looked really cute and he forgot he was mad at her.

The door opened again and Liz entered. "I think this place might be getting a bit crowded."

"It is." Shelby gave a pointed look at Will and he just rolled his eyes.

Liz saw it and smiled. Shelby was acting just as she had expected her to. "Will, why don't you go to my place and get some sleep? Rachel and I can stay with Shelby for a while."

Will looked at Shelby and then back at Liz. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, why not? Come on, I'll tell you how to get there." He pulled him out of the room. "I saw that look Shelby gave you, what happened?"

He felt weird talking to her about Shelby since, to him, she was a complete stranger. But she was Shelby's friend and she did know her better than him, so it wouldn't hurt have someone like that on his side. "We kind of had a fight."

"What do you mean 'kind of'?"

Will sighed. "She was being all 'I'm Shelby Corcoran and I don't need anybody' and it got on my nerves so I told her I wasn't going anywhere and she had to deal with it. Rachel came in before we started to yell at each other properly."

"Good, at least you're not a pushover. That's a start." Liz walked toward the elevator.

Will didn't know if he should be offended by that comment. He shrugged and followed her. "Just try not to push her too much. We wouldn't want her to dump you right now, would we?"

"No, of course not." Will got in the elevator behind Liz.

* * *

Rachel was playing with the edge of the sheet covering Shelby. "Mom?"

"Yes, baby?" Rachel had brought her some magazines and Shelby put down the one she was reading. She had learned to recognize Rachel's serious tone so she gave Rachel her full attention.

"I need you to promise me something."

Shelby frowned confused. "Of course, anything"

"You can't agree before I tell you what it is." Rachel let the sheet fall from her fingers and looked at Shelby.

"Fine, what is it?"

"I need you to promise me you're going to let Mr. Schue and Liz take care of you when I leave." She looked at Shelby with a firm look that made her look just like Shelby. "Please, I need to know you'll be ok." Her face fell and she looked at her pleadingly.

"Ok, I promise."

"I'll know if you're not doing it."

"Why is everyone so worried about me?" She frowned but she said it in a soft voice that let Rachel know she was glad about it.

"Because we love you."

* * *

Will opened the door to Liz's apartment with caution. She had walked down with him and gave him the address and a key. He peeked in and pushed the door open. Dropping his duffle bag by the door, he walked to the small living room and dropped down on the couch. The same picture that Shelby had in her house was on the windowsill. There were a few more pictures with other people and, on the back, another picture with Shelby. Will picked it up and smiled. They both looked really young, around 25. They were lying on the grass in Central Park and someone took a picture of them without telling them. Shelby had an open book next to her and Liz was laying her head on her lap. She was probably reading from it and Liz was smiling. They looked really happy.

Will put the picture back in its place and closed his eyes. He hadn't slept since Shelby called him yesterday. He was really worried and seeing her wound hadn't helped one bit. Also, her whole attitude was preoccupying. He knew Shelby distanced herself from people but he didn't expect her to be so snappy with him. Not especially since she told him she loved him. The closest thing to love he got from Shelby today, was a smile.

He groaned as he thought this would only get worse. Rachel was leaving in a couple of days which took away the ounce of civility Shelby showed in front of her. It also took away someone who could get Shelby to let people help her. And Shelby was going to miss her so she will probably be in a worse mood.

There was also the fact that she was in a hospital right now. She was medicated properly and taken care of by doctors and nurses who she couldn't talk back to. When she got released, in pain and unable to move, she would really be difficult. That was not going to be good.

* * *

Liz returned to the room and handed a cell phone to Shelby. "I got you one of those disposable phones in case you need something and there's no one here. Although I doubt these two will leave you alone but just in case." She looked at Rachel who was now half sitting on the chair half laying on Shelby's bed. Her head was next to Shelby's hip and Shelby was running her hands through her hair lovingly.

Shelby placed it on the table next to her bed and thanked her. Liz was still looking at her with a small smile. "What?"

"Nothing, you just never told me your boyfriend was so handsome and young."

"He's just a few years younger than me… but he is quite a looker, isn't he?"

Rachel raised her hand. "Still here"

"I'm not talking about sex yet, stop fussing. But he is amazing."

Rachel stood up. "I'm going to go find the nurse and ask her about the pastries so you two can have your girl talk."

Liz laughed and sat at the foot of the bed. "He has a great body."

Shelby raised an eyebrow. "Were you checking out my boyfriend?"

"Just a little." She shrugged. "Mine's better"

"I highly doubt it." Shelby's smile faltered. "Do you think I'm being too hard on him? I know he's only trying to help but…"

Liz got up and grabbed her hand. "Just try not to snap at him so much, sweetie. He really loves you, I saw it the second he entered the room. Cut him some slack."

"Rachel made me promise I'll let him take care of me."

Liz laughed and moved to the couch. "That girl really knows how to get you to do what she wants."

**

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AN: I'm leaving for NYC tomorrow so I won't be able to update this for a week at least. I'm really excited I'm going to Wicked. Fangirling like crazy right now.**

**This story has almost 400 reviews YAY! Leave me a lot of reviews so I read them when I get back and I start writing quickly :)**


	22. Every Time We Say Goodbye

**AN: I'm sorry it took me this long to update but it took me a while to get back into the story when I got back and I rewrote this like 5 times. I had a great time. I loooooooooooved Wicked. It was the most amazing thing ever. I got a picture with Katie Rose Clarke who's playing Glinda right now. Mandy Gonzalez didn't come out for the stage door though. I also went to Promises, Promises and Kristin Chenoweth signed my Playbill! I almost died. I went back the next day to get her to sign my Wicked poster. She's awesome! Now I just need Idina to sign it. Anyway, enough about me, I hope you enjoy this chapter. This isn't over yet, I want to wrap some things up properly.**

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Chapter 22: Every Time We Say Goodbye

Rachel glanced at the clock on the wall nervously. Liz's show had probably ended and she would arrive any minute now. Will had gone to fetch them something to eat other than cafeteria food.

She bit nervously on one of her nails and looked at Shelby. She was flipping through a magazine. She shifted in her seat for the millionth time and sighed.

"Rachel, is there something on your mind?"

Of course she would notice Rachel was nervous. She had been trying to find the right time to ask her all day. She just didn't think Shelby would say yes. She pulled her finger from her mouth and took a deep breath. "Yes, well… I was wondering, since I'm leaving tomorrow and all, if I could stay here tonight." She saw Shelby open her mouth to protest so she kept talking to prevent her from saying anything. "Mr. Schue has been here all day and Liz is going to be tired from her show. I could sleep on the couch; it's really not that uncomfortable. And if I need anything I could just call them."

Shelby waited a moment before answering to make sure her rant was over. It was kind of cute how, when she got nervous, she started babbling as if that would help her case somehow. She did that too. "I don't know, baby. You're going to be tired for your flight tomorrow."

"I can sleep on the plane. Please?" Rachel gave Shelby her best pleading look and saw Shelby's face soften. She had to try really hard not to smile when she saw this. She had leant to read Shelby's expressions and she knew she would say yes.

"Fine, but you sleep on the couch and if you need anything you call Will."

Rachel squealed and jumped from the couch to hug Shelby carefully.

* * *

Rachel jumped from the couch when she heard the door. Will stood there with a sheepish look holding two cups of coffee and a paper bag. "Sorry I woke you up. I brought you breakfast."

She ran the back of her hand across her eyes and stretched. The couch really wasn't comfortable, despite what she had told Shelby the night before, her neck was stiff and her back hurt like hell.

Will turned to Shelby's sleeping form on the bed and smiled. "She is really beautiful, isn't she?"

Rachel looked at his goofy expression. He was glad her mom had found someone who really loved her and wished she could find that too someday. "She is"

Will sat at the chair next to the bed and Shelby stirred awake. She opened her eyes and smiled at the sight of him sitting there looking at her lovingly. "How long have you been there staring at me? It's kind of creepy."

Will chuckled. "I just got here." He took a sip from his coffee and put it down next to the chair.

"Aren't you going to give me my good morning kiss?" Shelby said with a huge grin.

He bent down and kissed her, her lips parting slightly to allow him to deepen the kiss. When they parted she licked her lips with a smile. "You taste like coffee."

Will settled back on the chair and Shelby turned to face Rachel. She held out her hand to Will who didn't know what she wanted until he held out his hand too and she took it, twining their fingers together. "How did you sleep, honey?"

Rachel shrugged. "It wasn't that bad."

Will watched their joined hands. Shelby had been less than affectionate ever since he got there but today she was different, first the kiss and now this. They kissed frequently but she never actually asked for a kiss, and the hand holding wasn't strange either but it almost felt as if she needed to feel him. He didn't know if he should be worried about this or just happy.

Rachel finished her breakfast and got up from the couch. "I should go pack. I only have a few hours before I have to get to the airport."

Will felt Shelby tighten her grip on his hand slightly before answering. "Sure, Will can take you back to Liz's place, is she coming?"

"Yeah, she was just getting up when I left. She shouldn't take long. I can take Rachel and we'll come back when she's done until she has to leave." Will stood up to leave but Shelby didn't release his hand. She pulled him down and he gave her a quick peck and the kissed her forehead. "Are you ok?" He whispered against her forehead so that Rachel wouldn't hear.

She nodded discretely but he could see in her eyes that something was troubling her. He gave her another kiss and squeezed her hand before letting go and walking out with Rachel.

* * *

Shelby looked confused when she saw Will come into her room half an hour later. "Where's Rachel? Did something happen?"

"No, Liz was still in the house so she said she'd help Rachel pack and that I would only get in the way so they sent me back."

Shelby chuckled and motioned him to get closer. As soon as he was close enough she grabbed his shirt and pulled him down for a kiss. She kissed him hungrily and again he got the feeling that she needed this for some other reason than just because she wanted to kiss him. When he felt her hand sneaking into his shirt and brushing against his stomach he pulled back. She pouted endearingly and he brushed his finger along her bottom lip. "You're in a hospital bed, babe, I don't want to hurt you."

Something he couldn't quite identify flashed through Shelby's eyes but it was gone as fast as it came. He frowned and sat on the chair next to her. "What's wrong?"

She turned away from him. "Nothing."

He sighed and held her hand. "Shelby, I know you and I know something's wrong. Talk to me."

After staring at the ceiling for a while, Shelby started talking. "Rachel's leaving today and I'm really going to miss her. We've been together every day for three weeks. It's like we've been in our own little island and, except for the unfortunate event at the end, it's been perfect. I don't want things to change when we go back to Lima."

Will used his free hand to smooth her hair away from her face. "Everything's going to be alright. Rachel loves you and she won't let things change. She lives with her dads but you can still see her anytime and you could ask her to stay at your place more often. I'm sure she'd love to." He brushed her cheek with his thumb. "Don't be sad. I hate it when you're sad."

Shelby got a warm feeling spreading through her. Only Will could make her feel like that. She smiled. "I love you."

* * *

"That's the last bag." Rachel dropped the bag next to the door with a loud thump.

"Great! I think we have just enough time to go to the hospital for you to say goodbye and come back for the bags before we go to the airport." Liz turned to get her purse and missed Rachel's look of despair.

Liz came back holding her purse and her keys. "Are you ready?" Rachel didn't move from where she was standing staring at the bags on the floor. "Rachel?"

She gave an almost imperceptible nod and sniffed.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Liz stepped closer to Rachel and pulled back her face to reveal her tear stained face.

"I don't want to go back." She sobbed loudly and leaned into Liz's shoulder. "I miss my dads, of course but I don't want to leave my mom like this. And then we're going to be back and I'm going back to school and she's going to be Coach Corcoran from Vocal Adrenaline again and I'm going to be in another team and it's not going to be the same."

Liz hugged her trying to stop her shaking. "It's not going to be like that. Your mom won't let that happen, you know that." Liz pulled Rachel away from her and held her by the shoulders. "Let's do something. If you ever need to talk about your mom or anything, you call me. I can talk some sense into her if she needs it, ok?" Rachel nodded smiling weakly. "Good, now let's go."

* * *

The scene that welcomed them when they got back to Shelby's room wasn't the one they were expecting. Will was in the chair as close to Shelby as he could get just staring at her. He bent down to kiss her. When they separated, he whispered something in her ear and Shelby giggled.

Liz stopped abruptly as soon as she saw this and pressed her hand to her mouth. "Can you not be so nauseatingly cute? I think I'm going to be sick."

Shelby tore her gaze from Will's eyes stuck her tongue out. "Shut up."

Rachel laughed. "They're like that all the time."

"No, we're not!" Shelby pouted but smiled when Will nuzzled his nose on her cheek. "Stop that."

"Seriously, guys, I don't think I can take you two like that all the time. Can't you go back to yelling at each other?" Liz sat on the couch and grabbed a magazine, ignoring Shelby's glare.

Will stood up and motioned Rachel to sit down. Rachel walked slowly and sat next to Shelby, resting her hands on the edge of the bed.

"How did the packing go?"

"Good" She started fidgeting with the edge of the sheet on Shelby's bed.

"How much time do we have before you have to go?"

Rachel looked up at the clock and then looked back down towards her hands on the bed. "Less than an hour"

Shelby scooted away from Rachel slowly so she wouldn't hurt herself and then patted the bed next to her. Rachel stood up and sat next to Shelby without looking at her. Shelby took her hands. "I'm really going to miss you."

"Me too" Rachel couldn't hide the quiver in her voice and Shelby pulled her down. Rachel rested her head on Shelby's shoulder and immediately felt better. Before she had met Shelby and she felt bad, whenever her dads brought her a glass of water or hugged her, sometimes she wished her mom would be the one comforting her. Now she realized that this beat a glass of water any day.

Shelby smoothed her hair and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back before you know it."

They stayed like that until the time came for Rachel to leave. They hugged one last time and Liz ushered her out of the room.

Will returned to the chair next to Shelby and wiped a tear from her cheek. "Are you ok?"

Shelby took a deep breath and nodded. "I will be."

**

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AN: remember to review! And thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter. I didn't get a chance to reply but I loved your reviews. I'm over 400 now, thanks guys!**


	23. Finale B

**AN: This is the last chapter. Sorry it took me so long but I really didn't want to end this. It's extra long cause I didn't want to split it up. I really hope you like it. Since this is your last chance to review this story, do it. Please?**

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Chapter 23: Finale B

The first two days after Rachel left, Shelby barely said a word to either Will or Liz. She would give short answers when asked something or merely nod. She ate only what was necessary and without much gusto. The only times she spoke with full sentences was when Rachel called her. But then she tried to sound perky and avoided any questions on how she was feeling.

It got worse when the doctors decided to lower the dose of her pain medication in preparation for her discharge. She was quiet, moody and in a lot of pain.

Will was starting to get frustrated by Shelby's lack of communication. The first day he rejected the idea of calling Rachel and ask her to talk to Shelby, because Shelby would get really mad. But when the second day was the same, he needed to do something to get Shelby to snap out of it, so he called Rachel.

The next time Shelby's phone rang, he winced. He knew Rachel was going to say something to Shelby, and he knew Shelby was going to be mad at him but he figured yelling was a lot better than not talking.

Shelby gave him a confused look and picked up the phone, smiling as if Rachel could tell something was wrong with her if she didn't. "Hi, baby. How are you?"

"Good. Mom, I need to talk to you." Rachel hesitated not really knowing how to break the subject.

"Is everything ok, Rach? Do you need something?"

"Everything's fine, mom, I just… listen, I know."

Shelby was really confused now. "What do you know?"

Rachel sighed, there was no turning back now. "I know you're not talking and you're not eating properly."

"How… who?" Suddenly it clicked. She glared at Will who was now chewing on his nails nervously.

"Don't start yelling at Mr. Schue for telling me, he only did it because he cares about you." She heard Shelby grumble on the other side of the line. "Am I going to have to go back there for you to behave properly?"

"No. Rachel, I'm fine. Don't worry, ok?"

"Fine, just take care of yourself, ok? I want you to come back soon, I miss you."

Shelby smiled despite herself. She didn't like worrying Rachel but it felt good to know she cared about her. "I'm sorry, I will. I miss you too, baby."

"Don't get mad at Mr. Schue for this, he's just worried. You promised you'd let him take care of you."

Shelby looked at Will who just gave her a crooked apologetic smile. "I remember. Don't worry about it, Rach."

She hung up and Will looked at her nervously, fidgeting from his spot on the couch. "Honey?"

"Don't honey me, Will, I'm still deciding if I'm mad at you or not." She said it with a harsh voice but her face was relaxed.

Will smiled and walked to the chair next to her bed. He grabbed her hands and Shelby looked away. "Shelby"

The tender way he said her name made her look at him. He had that look on his face. The look she knew he knew melted her every time. It wasn't fair. She felt her anger subsiding and being replaced by a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach, a mixture of love and lust that made her a little lightheaded. He ran his hand along her cheek and it made her shiver. He saw his smile widen and she chided herself internally for her lack of control.

"Are you angry I called Rachel?" He lowered his fingers and traced her jaw line.

Shelby couldn't think about being angry when he was looking at her like that. "I…"

Shelby could count with one hand all the times she had been rendered speechless, and from those times, none were because of a guy.

Will leaned down and trailed kisses from her temple down to her neck. Shelby leaned her head to allow him access. "So you're not angry?"

Shelby gasped involuntarily when he nuzzled her neck and regretted it immediately when he chuckled. "Stop trying to make me forget I'm mad at you."

Will pulled away. "So you want me to stop?"

Shelby pulled him back down and kissed him slowly. "Never"

* * *

The doctor closed his clipboard with a loud snap. "Everything seems to be fine, you're healing properly and there's no sign of infection. I think we can release you in the afternoon and you can fly back home tomorrow if you feel good enough to do it."

The doctor left the room and Shelby shifted on the bed with a smile. She was now able to sit without much pain and the thought of leaving this place and being able to eat actual food thrilled her to no end. Also, she really missed Rachel. It had been a week since she left and their phone conversations were starting to get her down. She felt totally disconnected with what was going on in Rachel's life since she rarely talked about herself, she just kept asking her when she was coming back. The last time she talked to her, Rachel had cried for over ten minutes until Shelby reassured her she would ask the doctor when she could leave. Rachel was going to be thrilled to hear she was going to be able to fly back in a day.

Her last few hours in the hospital were spent signing release forms and filling out insurance papers. She also had to give her Lima doctor's contact information so they could send her all her charts so she could do a proper follow up on her treatment. After everything was signed and ready, Liz helped her to change into some sweat pants and a t-shirt she brought her. She complained, arguing she could do it herself, but when Liz saw her pained expression when she tried to pull up the pants she rushed to help her.

A nurse brought a wheel chair into the room and Shelby groaned. The doctor had told her she should try walking short distances and see how it felt but she couldn't walk down to the cab or up to Liz's apartment, and Will was certainly not going to let her walk to and from the plane either. This was going to be really hard to take.

Will helped her into the chair and wheeled her to the elevator. She pouted the whole way and Will chuckled and bent to whisper in her ear. "You're going home, you should look happier." She turned and glared at him. "I'll give you a sponge bath when we get there tomorrow, how's that?"

She tried to keep her glare but her face softened. Liz pushed the button for the elevator and scoffed at their exchange. They went down and Liz ran ahead to get a cab.

"What's with her?"

Shelby shrugged. "I don't know, maybe she's tired. She was a bit grumpy when she helped me get dressed."

The cab ride to Liz's apartment was quiet. Will let Liz and Shelby ride on the back by themselves to give Shelby more room. Liz stared out the window the whole ride and didn't say a word.

When they got there, Will carried Shelby up and settled her in Liz's guest bedroom. "I hate that you have to carry me around." She pouted as he put her down on the bed.

"I know, but you can't do it on your own just yet. We'll try it when we get home. I'll be in the living room if you need anything, babe."

Shelby frowned. _Will just said 'When we get home'. As in our home, the place where we both live together._ She saw Liz walk through and thought it might be a good idea to discuss this with her so she called her over. She had a habit of overreacting over semantics. Maybe it wasn't such a big deal.

Liz entered the room and sighed. "You need something?" If she hadn't been so preoccupied with what Will said she might have noticed her not-so-nice tone.

"Close the door." She waited until she closed it. "Will just said 'when we get home'. Does that mean something? Am I reading too much into it? I mean, he could have ju-Shelby looked up at Liz who was clearly not listening to her. She looked like she was going to cry. "Are you ok?"

"Yes" She tried to hide the hitch in her voice, but she couldn't and she started crying.

"Honey, what's wrong? Come here." Shelby patted the spot next to her on the bed and Liz sat down, trying to control herself.

"I'm really going to miss you, and I know I should be glad because you're better, but we haven't spent so much time together since we were roommates. I really missed you Shelby."

Shelby hugged her awkwardly with her right arm. "We have seen each other and we talk on the phone."

Liz glared at her from behind the tissue she was holding to her nose. "You've been here once and we talk like once every other month or even less. You never come to see me when you're in town. I've just missed us, you know, like we used to be, just hanging out, drinking wine and going to shows. I get that we live in different places and we have different lives, but I wish we could do this more often."

"Oh sweetie, I'm sorry. I really missed you too. We'll talk more often and you can come visit me anytime. I know it's not as fun and glamorous as New York but there is some fun stuff we could do." Shelby pulled her closer.

Liz sniffled, her voice barely above a whisper. "I'd like that."

Will opened the door distractedly. "Hi Shelb- What's going on?"

Liz and Shelby were sitting on the bed crying. Liz looked at Will and sobbed loudly, pressing her face into Shelby's shoulder.

Will was confused and scared, but mostly confused. "Are you guys ok? Do you need something? Tissues maybe?"

Shelby was the only one who could answer since Liz was still pressing her face against Shelby. "We're fine, Will, go away."

"You don't look fine." Shelby threw him one of her signature glares and he put his arms up defensively. "Ok, ok, I'm leaving, geez."

* * *

The next day, Liz went with them to the airport. Will ran in to get a wheelchair and left Shelby with Liz to go check their bags in. Liz wheeled Shelby to the departure gate and stopped just before the metal detectors to wait for Will to get back.

She walked around to face Shelby and kneeled down to be on her same level. "I know I've said this already, but I'm really going to miss you."

"I'm really going to miss you too."

Liz saw Will coming back and she stood up so she could say goodbye to him and they could go.

"I'll call you when we land." Shelby reached out and squeezed her hand.

"Ok, love ya." She turned to Will and moved him a few steps away. "Take care of her and don't let her push you away. Not just with this, she loves you"

"I know, I won't." He gave her a quick hug and then walked back to Shelby. "Ready, babe?"

Shelby just nodded and Will pushed her towards the metal detectors.

* * *

Handling the bags and Shelby was proving to be more difficult than Will had expected. He was trying to push Shelby with one hand while maneuvering one bag with his other hand and the other one with his foot. He never thought he'd feel so relieved to hear Rachel's scream when she saw them.

"Mom!" Rachel ran towards them, both of her dads in tow, and leaned down to kiss Shelby.

"Hi, baby! I've missed you so much." Shelby grabbed Rachel's hand and nodded towards Mark and Ben. Ben helped Will with one bag and Rachel took Shelby's chair.

"How are you? How long until you can walk? Can I stay with you tonight?" Rachel bombarded her with questions and she wasn't sure which one to answer first.

Mark stepped in. "Rachel, I'm sure Shelby is really tired. You should let her rest. You can stay over when she feels better."

Rachel turned to Shelby with a pleading look. "Well, if your dads don't mind... I'm not really that tired, all I've been doing is sleep."

Rachel turned to Mark again. "Daaad?"

"Are you sure?"

Shelby nodded. "If she doesn't mind me just laying on the couch all the time and Will is staying with me so she'll have someone if she needs anything."

They had exited the airport and Will had hailed a cab. "Ok. But if you need something you call."

Rachel jumped up and hugged Mark "Thanks daddy!"

The three of them got into the cab. Shelby sitting in the middle, leaning her head on Will's shoulder and holding Rachel's hand. Shelby took out her phone and called Liz to tell her they arrived safely.

When she hung up, Will pressed a kiss to her temple. "So, what do you want to do?"

Shelby shrugged. "I don't know, we could watch a movie. And I want some real food."

"I can cook that pasta you love."

"Oh really? I would love that." Shelby turned her head and kissed his cheek. He looked down at her with a goofy smile.

"Rach, you want to see a movie?"

"Sure…" Rachel pulled her gaze from the window and smiled. "Can we watch "Funny Girl", please?"

Shelby chuckled. "We've watched it like a hundred times."

"I know, but it's my favorite and we haven't watched it in at least a month."

Will looked at Rachel. "I've never watched it."

Rachel gasped outraged. "You've never watched "Funny Girl"?"

He was confused. "No, why? Should I have? It doesn't sound like the greatest movie. Who's in it?"

"Who's in it? Mom, are you seriously dating him?"

Shelby laughed. "You have to admit, Rach, it's not exactly a guy film." She turned to Will. "We can watch it today so Rachel can sleep knowing her mom is not dating a guy who doesn't know Barbara Streisand plays Fanny Brice in "Funny Girl"."

Rachel's phone chirped in her pocket and she took it out. "Mom, Kate's been about you all week. If we're just watching a movie, maybe she could come?"

"Sure, baby, if Will doesn't mind cooking for four."

"It's pasta, you just throw more pasta into the pot."

They arrived at Shelby's house and Rachel took their bags in while Will carried Shelby to the couch. He fussed about the cushions for a while until Shelby, softly but exasperatedly, asked him to leave them alone.

Rachel offered to unpack Shelby's bag while she waited for Kate to arrive and took Shelby's bag up to her room. Will went into the kitchen to start cooking.

Shelby took a deep breath and took a moment to enjoy being back at her own house. She looked around her living room. A lot of things had changed in the past months. There were some pictures of her and Rachel on the mantle which had been empty before. A vase, now with withered flowers, on the table that usually held fresh flowers Will brought her whenever he saw the old ones start to wilt. She even had a picture of her and Will on her side table, next to the one of her and Liz.

She smiled when she remembered Liz. She had been the only person she had ever allowed to get close to her in a long time. She was the one who helped her see that sometimes people weren't so bad.

Will came back into the room holding a steaming spoon. "Taste the sauce."

He lowered the spoon to Shelby's mouth after blowing softly across the surface. Shelby opened her mouth and slurped some of the sauce into her mouth. She closed her eyes and moaned. "It's perfect."

"You have a little…" Will kissed her and licked a drop of sauce from the side of her mouth. "It is perfect."

"Liz is right, you are nauseatingly cute."

Will turned and saw Rachel coming down with her nose wrinkled. He smiled at her and then gave Shelby a little peck before getting off the couch. "I'll go finish this."

Rachel sat next to Shelby, on the crook of her waist. Her injured side was to the back of the couch. "I'm done unpacking. Well, most of it was dirty clothes so I just threw them in the hamper. But I put everything else away."

Shelby smoothed Rachel's hair. "Thanks, baby."

Rachel looked away from Shelby and then back at her, hesitantly. Suddenly she bent down and hugged her, pressing her face to the side of Shelby's neck. "I love you, mom."

It took a second for Shelby to get over the initial shock of Rachel's sudden sentimentalism. She pulled Rachel closer with one hand and patted Rachel's head with the other one. "I love you too."

There was a knock on the door and Rachel stood up to get it, wiping away a few tears discreetly. She came back with Kate behind her.

"Hi, Ms. Corcoran, I know you like chocolate so I brought you some." She handed her a huge box of chocolate and took a tiny step back.

Shelby looked from the box to Kate and smiled. "Thanks… I… Come here." She held her arms out and motioned Kate to get closer. She leaned down awkwardly and Shelby hugged her tight.

Will came out of the kitchen with the pasta. "Dinner's ready. Rachel, can you set the table?"

"Sure" Rachel skipped to the kitchen and Kate followed her.

Will left the plate on the dining room table and walked to Shelby. "What's that?"

"Kate brought them for me. Isn't she sweet?"

Will extended a hand towards the box and Shelby slapped it away. "They're mine, you can't have any."

"I was just going to see them." He smiled. "Do you want to try walking to the table, babe?"

"Yes." With some effort, Shelby managed to get up and started taking tentative steps toward the table. Will held her hip with one hand and her arm with the other to keep her stable. By the time they got to the table, Rachel and Kate were almost done. Will held out her chair for her and pushed her closer to the table when she sat.

"Are you ok?" He studied her face trying to find any indication of pain.

"It wasn't that bad."

Will seemed satisfied with her answer and moved to the other side of the table to start serving the pasta. Rachel placed the last glass and walked to her seat, dropping a kiss on Shelby's head before getting there.

Shelby looked around the table and smiled. Will and Rachel sat on either side of her and Kate on Rachel's other side. They were passing around plates and beverages, chatting lightly. _Yeah, people aren't that bad._

**

* * *

AN: Remember, last chance to tell me how much you loved/hated this story. I'm extremely grateful for all of your comments and thanks for reading it, even if you didn't comment. I will still write oneshots on "Lemons and Melons and Pears" and I'm thinking about a sequel to this but I still haven't decided. My writing time went down considerably since I started school.**


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